Panera Bread Company PNRA recently announced that it will switch to 100% cage-free eggs in the U.S. Panera Bread and St. Louis Bread Co. bakery-cafes by 2020. This will include all shell eggs, hardboiled and liquid egg whites as well as those used in sweet goods, soufflés and dressings. The company currently uses cage-free eggs for 21% of its products. This is a prt of the company’s comprehensive Food Policy, introduced in June, regarding its shift to healthier food alternatives.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), cage-free hens are never kept in cages. Gestation crate-free pork is sourced from those suppliers who do not keep the livestock in metal enclosures.
In 2015, 100% of the company’s pork supply was antibiotic free and sourced from farms where pregnant sows were able to roam freely and pigs were raised on a vegetarian diet.
Also, the company noted that 89% of the beef it served in 2015 was grass-fed and sourced from farms where cattle were able to graze freely. Further, the company served chicken – in sandwiches and salads – which were entirely antibiotic-free and raised on vegetarian diet. Also, all the roasted turkeys, used in sandwiches and salads, were antibiotic free.
Panera’s Food Policy is consistent with the growing awareness for healthy diet among consumers. The St. Louis-based company intends to remove artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners and preservatives from its menu by 2016-end. The company has also pledged to use ingredients that do not contain additives such as artificial transfats and monosodium glutamate (MSG). The company further intends to mention the ingredients and calories on menus to inform customers about the food they buy.
Health consciousness is increasing among the masses and Americans are gradually refraining from food with higher calories, fat and sugars but low on vitamins, minerals and other micro-nutrients. Therefore, food companies are increasingly changing their priorities to focus more on “good for you” products. For example, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc.’s CMG “Food with Integrity” campaign promotes that its meat is raised without hormones and antibiotics and mostly local and organic produce is used.
In fact, in April, Dunkin' Brands Group, Inc. DNKN announced, in partnership with Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), that 10% of all eggs used for its breakfast sandwiches in the U.S. will be cage-free by the end of 2016. Additionally, the company declared that it will only use gestation crate-free pork in the U.S. by 2022. In fact, Dunkin’ Donuts already uses cage-free eggs for 5% of its domestic needs.
McDonald’s Corp. MCD declared in September that it will change the way it sources its eggs and use cage-free ones. The burger giant has announced that over the next decade, it will completely shift to cage-free eggs for its approximately 16,000 restaurants in the U.S. and Canada.
Panera currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
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