Since 1970, the commemoration of Earth Day on April 22 has each year engaged 1 billion people in more than 190 countries across the globe to inspire changes in human behavior and create global, national and policy changes to protect our planet.
As part of our commitment to People, Pizza and the Planet – our framework for making a positive impact on the world around us – Papa Johns works to ensure that the pizzas we make and the ingredients we purchase go to good use. To celebrate Earth Day this year, our Menu & Culinary team cooked up some fun and easy hacks for you to enjoy the flavors of Papa Johns in new ways AND keep leftover food items out of landfills.
Pizza Croutons
Pizza – it’s not just for the standard triangle and square cuts anymore. Leftover pizza can be easily turned into Pizza Croutons. Give your salads a creative twist by topping it with Pizza Croutons or serve them as a fun, quick snack for kids in just three easy steps:
- Cut a slice of pizza into equal size pieces
- Bake in convection or toaster oven until crispy
- Allow to cool and enjoy!
Our Wing Box Makes a “Fly” Lunch
The experience of enjoying Papa Johns can be a gift that keeps on giving. Turning our specially designed wing boxes into bento-style lunchboxes can keep the memories of your family’s last “pizza and wings night” alive at school, office or even on a plane. Instead of tossing that wing box in the trash, try this:
- Rinse wing box and dry
- Build a healthy on-the-go lunch by placing baby carrots, cucumber slices, cherry tomatoes, pitas/crackers and cheese into the box
- Add one of your favorite Papa Johns dipping sauce cups into the space we designed to make it easy to dip away with less mess
Garlic Popcorn
Obsessed with our famous Special Garlic Sauce? Same, SAME! Those beloved cups of flavor that come with every Papa Johns pizza can also create a savory snack. For your next movie night, take your microwave popcorn to the next level:
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- Pop popcorn in microwave according to package
- Add one Special Garlic Sauce dipping cup to bag and toss
- Pour popcorn into a bowl and drizzle with another Special Garlic Sauce dipping cup
- Finish with two packets of Parmesan Cheese by Papa Johns
*To make movie-watching even spicier, try using our Spicy Garlic Sauce!
Keeping would-be food waste out of landfills not only benefits the planet, but can also help in the fight against food insecurity. In Papa Johns restaurants, we use forecasting tools and an upgraded inventory management system to source ingredients accurately, but occasionally mistakes are made, or orders go uncollected.
To turn these occurrences into positive action, Papa Johns launched its Harvest Program more than ten years ago. In partnership with the Food Donation Connection, incorrect and uncollected orders from our restaurants are donated to community organizations like food banks.
Since 2010, the program has diverted 3.6 million pounds of food that would have otherwise gone to landfills to help feed those in need. Our Harvest Program is one way we plan to meet our goal to donate 10 million meals to those in need over the next five years.
