At this time of year, there’s no shortage of calendars being sold for charity, but what makes Chipotle Mexican Grill’s calendar different is its models–and its unique cause. Instead of shirtless firefighters or scantily-clad women, this calendar features–what else?–burritos. Each month showcases a modest burrito, completely wrapped in foil, in different seasonal poses.
Chipotle will sell these whimsical calendars in its stores for $5 apiece. Proceeds from calendar sales will be divided among two organizations which reflect Chipotle’s mission of Food With Integrity: The Land Institute and the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture. If all available calendars are sold, Chipotle will raise about $100,000 for these organizations.
“Given that 2006 was a great year for us, we decided to start off 2007 by supporting two terrific organizations that are true leaders in a cause that’s near and dear to us,” said Jim Adams, Chipotle’s director of marketing and bon vivant. “But just like we don’t exploit our natural resources, we don’t exploit our burritos, either. We required all our models to be completely covered in foil, not showing any tortilla.”
In addition to supporting the Land Institute and Leopold Center, people who buy the Chipotle calendar will get a little help of their own. The calendar features an extra day each week–a Chipolday–sandwiched between Saturday and Sunday.
“There never seems to be enough hours in a week, so we made an extra day. Why not?” said Adams.
The Land Institute is an organization based on the Kansas prairie in Salina, working to develop an agricultural system called Natural Systems Agriculture that respects the sustainability of the native prairie and produces annual crops. Under this system, crops such as wheat and corn would behave like perennial plants and would require little tilling or chemical fertilizer. For more information, visit www.landinstitute.org.
The Leopold Center in Ames, Iowa is a research and education center at Iowa State University. The Center’s programs are designed to develop sustainable agricultural practices that are both profitable and conserve natural resources. To learn more, visit www.leopold.iastate.edu.
