NACS online recently posted an article entitled “Chipotle Cultivates ‘Thought’ on Packaging.”

Struggling to stay relevant, restaurants can either follow industry trends, which may yield some increases in overall business, or they can try something truly unique.

Chipotle is doing just that. Their new restaurant packaging is part of an overall program which features original essays by influential thought-leaders, authors, actors and even comedians.

The program – created in partnership with author Jonathan Safran Foer (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Eating Animals, Everything is Illuminated) – is meant to be an extension of Chipotle’s overall company mission to tell its unique story by engaging customers with thought-provoking ideas and cultural issues.

Mark Crumpacker, chief marketing and development officer at Chipotle, says that, “Packaging in fast-food restaurants is typically sold to advertisers, or used to promote new limited-time menu items, but we have never used our packaging that way.

Instead, we have used it to entertain our customers using wit, humor and design. Following in that tradition, our new packaging allows customers to connect with a great selection of entertaining and thought-provoking authors they may not otherwise have encountered.”

Crumpacker goes on to say, “We live in a world in which there is shrinking space for literature and writing, and less time than ever for quiet reflection. The idea of expanding the space and time, of creating a small pocket of thoughtfulness right in the middle of the busy day, was inspiring to me – particularly given the size and diversity of the audience, which is America itself.”

In short, Chipotle is trying to inspire society, even in a small way, in the hopes of creating a better tomorrow for everyone. A noble and noteworthy effort indeed.