Panera Bans 150 Ingredients In Push For Healthy Menu

(RTTNews) - Panera has banned more than 150 artificial ingredients from its food, and will remove all traces of the ingredients from its menu by 2016, the company confirmed Tuesday.

Customers want a healthier menu, according to CEO Ron Shaich, who spoke with numerous media outlets about the changes.

"We are increasingly focused on what is in our food and ridding ourselves of a lot of chemical additives," he told Fortune. "That isn't going to go away. It is going to intensify, that discussion."

"My kids are eating Panera 10 to 11 times a week," Shaich added. "I don't want to serve them junk."

Among the artificial ingredients Panera will cut are saccharin, aspartame, synthetic benzyl peroxide, glycerides and maltodextrin.

Partially hydrogenated oils and artificial trans fat also made the list of unacceptable items.

Starting today, its salads will be made with "clean" ingredients instead of preservatives and artificial sweeteners, a big challenge in an industry that relies heavily on pre-packaged salad dressing.

Panera joins a growing list of quick-service restaurants in trying to change the perception that they serve tasty but ultimately unhealthy food.

Fast food giant McDonald's, in a bid to boost slowing sales, is all set to make changes to its grilled chicken recipe by removing ingredients that may sound like chemicals to customers.

Earlier, Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. said it will now serve only food that is free of genetically modified ingredients, becoming the first national restaurant chain to be GMO-free.