Panera Bread Celebrates the Joy of Eating with New Campaign: "Food as It Should Be"

Panera Bread PNRA, -0.22% has unveiled a new national advertising platform to express the company's long-held belief in food that is good and good for you.

"The Panera experience starts with great taste, but good food should also be good for you. For us, that means a menu you can trust and understand," said Chris Hollander, Head of Marketing.

From becoming the first national restaurant company to voluntarily post calories on menu boards, to offering chicken raised without antibiotics ahead of the industry, to removing artificial trans fats and announcing our clean menu commitment -- we've been working for several decades to earn the trust and confidence of our guests. While we'll always be on a journey to improve, 'Food as it should be' brings to life our progress, ideals and vision." Developed in collaboration with the award-winning agency Anomaly, the "Food as it should be" campaign includes national television spots, billboards, radio advertising and digital and display content that will begin to air this week. The campaign's anthem spot will also appear on digital video platforms and in movie theaters this summer.

"You'll notice that people are in the forefront of our campaign creative. It's a bold move from industry standard product shots, but we believe that people are as integral to the joy of eating as the food," said Hollander.

Consumers will be able to interact with campaign content via social media and MyPanera, and the campaign will also be featured on www.panerabread.com.

"When you don't need to compromise to eat well, you are truly able to enjoy a meal," said Ron Shaich, founder and CEO. "We've been on a journey to remove those anxieties for our guests -- to be a true ally in their wellness journey. When you come to Panera, you can count on us to tell you what's in your food. You can trust our commitment to clean ingredients. We want to enable our guests to focus their energies on the joys of eating: naturally delicious ingredients, served with transparency and respect, and shared with friends and family. That is food as it should be." Since unveiling its Food Policy in June 2014, Panera has continued work towards three commitments: clean ingredients, a transparent menu and a positive impact on the food system. In the last year, the company has shared its progress relative to animal welfare standards and the removal of artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners and preservatives from the food in its bakery-cafes by the end of 2016.

The company's commitments were shared directly from Shaich in a letter that appeared in national newspapers, including The New York Times, over the weekend.

Shaich's letter also challenged participation: "If you'd like to be part of the solution, please join us on our journey. We all have a job to do. Yours is simple: Care. Ask questions. Demand transparency and cleaner menus." In a first for the restaurant industry, Panera is opening its pantry to the public on Wednesday, June 17 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 101 Wooster Street, New York, NY to invite conversation around its more than 450 ingredients. Panera's culinary, baking and nutrition teams will be on-hand to talk about the ways Panera's menu has and will continue to change to live up to ideals of food as it should be, while sampling 'clean' summer salads and sprouted grain rolls.

Also featured in the Panera Pantry will be the company's newest ally in efforts to have a positive impact on the food system: Barnraiser. Founded by Eileen Gordon Chiarello, proprietor of a sustainable farm with her husband, TV host and Chef Michael Chiarello, this community and funding platform allows members to influence and scale the food movement by connecting to innovators of sustainable food and farming to collectively back projects that shape how we farm and eat. Panera Bread supports Barnraiser's mission to help shape a more healthful food future.

About Panera Bread 30 years ago, at a time when quick service meant low quality, Panera set out to challenge this expectation. We believed that food that was good and that you could feel good about, served in a warm and welcoming environment by people who cared, could bring out the best in all of us. To us, that is food as it should be and that is why we exist.

So we began with a simple commitment: to bake fresh bread from fresh dough in every bakery-cafe, every day. No artificial preservatives or short cuts, just bakers with simple ingredients and hot ovens. Each night, any unsold bread and baked goods were shared with neighbors in need.

These traditions carry on today, as we have continued to find ways to be an ally to our guests. That means crafting a menu of soups, salads and sandwiches that we are proud to feed our families. Like poultry and pork raised without antibiotics on our salads and sandwiches. A commitment to transparency and options that empower our guests to eat the way they want. Seasonal flavors and whole grains. And a commitment to removing artificial additives (flavors, colors, sweeteners and preservatives) from the food in our bakery-cafes. Why? Because we think that simpler is better and we believe in serving food as it should be. Because when you don't have to compromise to eat well, all that is left is the joy of eating.

We're also focused on improving quality and convenience. With investments in technology and operations, we now offer new ways to enjoy your Panera favorites -- like mobile ordering and Rapid Pick-Up for to-go orders -- all designed to make things easier for our guests. As of April 28, 2015, there are 1,901 bakery-cafes in 45 states and in Ontario, Canada operating under the Panera Bread, Saint Louis Bread Co. or Paradise Bakery & Cafe names. For more information, visit panerabread.com or find us on Twitter (@panerabread), Facebook (facebook.com/panerabread) or Instagram (@panerabread).

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