Reduced Carbon
Emissions

Your Real Foodprint is a calculation of carbon emissions produced as a result of the growing and preparation methods of each of our 53 ingredients as compared to conventional.

What are carbon emissions

Carbon dioxide emissions are a type of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission. Other greenhouse gases, like methane and nitrous oxide, are even more potent than carbon dioxide. Our calculations include all of the different types of GHGs, and we roll them up into “carbon dioxide equivalents” (CO2e).

CALCULATING OUR INGREDIENTS CARBON IMPACT

HowGood calculated the on-farm carbon impact of each of our ingredients based on how they were sourced. For example, the rotational grazing of cattle or the purchase of organically grown ingredients helps reduce net emissions by sequestering carbon in the soil where the animals graze or reducing the use of synthetic fertilizers.

How We back it up

We partnered with HowGood, an independent research company, with the world’s largest database on food sustainability. They assessed each of our 53 ingredients and compared them to the industry average agricultural impact against five key metrics (reduced carbon emissions, antibiotics avoided, water saved, improved soil health, and supported organic land). For carbon specifically, they also relied on these three resources for measurement.
‍
International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment Journal of Cleaner Production EcoInvent Life Cycle Assessment Database v3.6

Compare our carbon foodprint

average Carbon impact across each of our 53 real ingredients based on our leading sourcing standards as compared to conventional ingredients.

Ingredient

Chiptole Avg

Industry Avg

Difference

Carne Asada

2.6 kg

2.8 kg

Chicken

.3 kg

Steak

2.6 kg

2.8 kg

Barbacoa

2.5 kg

2.7 kg

Carnitas

.6 kg

Sofritas

0 kg

White Rice

0 kg

Brown Rice

0 kg

Black Beans

0 kg

Pinto Beans

0 kg

Guacamole

0 kg

Fresh Tomato Salsa

0 kg

Roasted Chili-Corn Salsa

0 kg

Tomatillo-Green Chili Salsa

0 kg

Tomatillo-red Chili Salsa

0 kg

Sour Cream

0 kg

Fajita Veg

0 kg

Cheese

0 kg

Romaine Lettuce

0 kg

SuperGreens Salad

0 kg

Vinaigrette

0 kg

Tortilla

0 kg

Queso Blanco

0 kg

Climate and Carbon

We compared our greenhouse gas emissions from the source to the bowl or burrito against the industry average to calculate your Real Foodprint carbon score. We’re committed to continuing changes in our supply chain to drive the biggest positive impact.

OUR EFFORTS

5%
REDUCTION

of inbound loads.

100% COMPOSTABLE

bowls, and compostable cups by end 2020.

THE BIGGEST IMPACT

These thoughtfully-sourced Chipotle ingredients had the biggest positive impact on carbon emissions of all of our 53 ingredients, and are listed in the order of their carbon savings.

Beef

In 2019, 36% of the beef Chipotle served was grass-fed. Additionally, 24 million pounds out of the 86 million pounds of beef that we sourced in 2019 was from partners who practice rotational grazing. HowGood's analysis determined that these and other practices result in significantly lower than industry average emissions (27 kg CO2e / kg compared to 33 kg CO2e / kg).

We continue to seek out new grass-fed ranchers and partners. One of our partners custom built a program to meet Chipotle’s award-winning animal welfare standards, growing from 22 farms and ranches in 2012 to over 2,500 today.

our Animal Welfare Standards

Soybeans (tofu)

Organic crops generally avoid the use of synthetic fertilizers and the high yielding carbon emissions associated with their manufacturing and application. We sourced more than 5 million pounds of organic soybeans for our Sofritas in 2019—an almost 2 million pound increase over 2018.

Our sustainability efforts

CILANTRO

We’ve worked to build the supply of organic cilantro with our farmer partners. When we sought to purchase 100% organic cilantro, there simply wasn't enough. Through partnering with our suppliers, we’ve worked hard to build the supply of organic cilantro at scale. In 2019, we purchased 50% of our cilantro organically, and 21% transitionally (from farms that were using organic practices, but were not yet certified—a 3 year process). In 2020, we’ve grown those numbers to 65% organic and 21% transitional. We continue to invest in the future of organic cilantro and help farms move to being officially certified organic.

Our Commitment to organic

Room for Improvement

Though Chipotle’s responsibly-sourced beef helps to bring down greenhouse gases, it’s also our highest-emitting ingredient. We’ll continue to improve our impact through beef that’s raised responsibly and from increasing the proportion of our suppliers using rotational grazing, which helps reduce carbon emissions. Though logistics and operations are not included in Real Foodprint, we will also continue to seek opportunities to reduce the carbon impact of our supply chain, logistics, and operations. We are committed to continuing to publicly disclose our carbon footprint and adopt an overall long term, science based, GHG emissions reduction target.

CONSERVATION EFFORTS WE’RE MAKING
BEYOND OUR INGREDIENTS

Learn about some other ways we are continuing to drive sustainable impact.

Upcycled avocado pits

We’re left with about 300 million avocado pits each year. So we put some of them to good use, dying tees, totes, and sweatshirts for a Chipotle Goods limited time product line. Each piece is one-of-a-kind due to the natural dying process.

Watch the video

GLOVES TO BAGS

In 2018, we began a pilot program upcycling used plastic gloves from our restaurants, turning them into waste bags. With the expansion of the program, plus other target initiatives, we saw a 5% average decrease in overall plastic waste.

Watch The Video

WHAT ELSE WE'RE WORKING ON

Chipotle Goods

Our new line of Chipotle Goods are thoughtfully made from the inside out with a variety of apparel items made from 100% organic cotton, recycled plastic bottles, and recycled cutting scraps. In addition, 100% of profits go to support organizations that are making apparel and farming more sustainable.

Shop Chipotle Goods

91%

Of our more than 2,600 restaurants, 91% of them recycle.

27%

In 2019, more than a quarter of our total restaurants composted. Up from 31,469 cubic yards in 2018, we composted nearly 37,000 cubic yards in 2019.

50% Diversion

In 2020, we’re on track towards our goal to divert 50% of our waste from landfills. How we’re getting there takes everything from recycling to upcycling. For example, in 2020 we launched a limited time product line dyed using avocado pits collected from our restaurants.

5% Reduction OF Inbound Truckloads

Through more strategic logistics, we were able to decrease the number of trucks used to get our food and materials to our distribution centers by 5% last year despite our double digit growth.

1,465,490

Almost half of all of our waste is recycled, or 1,465,490 cubic yards.

47%

We’re proud to grow our diversion of waste from landfills to 47%, up from 42% in 2018.

Calculate your real foodprint

Build your favorite Chipotle entrées in our Real Foodprint order simulator and we’ll show you the impact you’re helping to make when you choose Chipotle.

Get your foodprint