The Company That Supplies Panera's Coffee Has A Boatload To Brag About

Panera Bread is renowned for its toasty sandwiches, hearty soups, and rich handcrafted coffee beverages. But where exactly does the brand receive its caffeine supply from? Panera has partnered with Distant Lands Coffee since 1994 to bring the flavorful java roasts from the green pastures to the table. Distant Lands plants, roasts, supplies, and sources coffee products to stores and eateries. The company started its business over 45 years ago in the Costa Rican countryside. They are considered to be scions of both sustainability and labor standards in the caffeine industry. 

Distant Lands is noted to be the only coffee company that focuses on having a fully consolidated supply chain. The brand employs a vertically integrated business model, meaning that it has control over every piece of the coffee production chain — from selecting the coffee seeds to plant, to sourcing the coffee beans from around the world, and from personal delivery to clientele. On the sustainability front, Distant Lands prides itself on making sure that the farmers it works with earn livable salaries and maintain healthy coffee gardens while keeping the wildlife habitat in act, ensuring that its farmlands are ecologically sound.

Distant Lands has a list of crowning achievements that make them one of the best in the coffee biz. They are the second largest coffee cultivator in Costa Rica, and were the first coffee company to be Rainforest Alliance Certified. This means that the company uses impeccable sustainability practices that positively affect both its consumers and the planet. The seal of approval for Distant Lands lets customers know that the lush farms and clean water used creates excellent coffee standards.  The Costa Rican Minister of Health and Agriculture even granted the company with a merit award in 2023 for ethically contributing to the horticulture of the Central American country. 

As for their environmental practices, the business has opted to lower their use of harmful herbicides and insecticides by at least a quarter. Employees yank the weeds from the ground by hand instead of using chemicals. The plantations are mapped out to protect the surrounding wildlife by having interconnected forests and shaded coffee pockets.

The brand is known have excellent labor practices, making sure that their workers and farmers are taken care of in exchange for their efforts. They provide health insurance for their employees, while also creating a safe working environment for them alongside proper food and education.