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Chipotle launches 'Farmed and Dangerous' comedy series via Hulu

January 27, 2014

Chipotle Mexican Grill today announced plans to launch "Farmed and Dangerous," a Chipotle original comedy series that satirically explores the world of industrial agriculture in America. Produced by Chipotle and New York-based studio Piro, the initial four-episode season will be presented weekly on Hulu and Hulu Plus beginning Feb. 17.

According to a news release, the show integrates Chipotle's "values and commitment to serving food made with the highest quality ingredients through the content and themes of the show itself, without any explicit Chipotle branding."

The company said "Farmed and Dangerous" satirizes the lengths to which corporate agribusiness and its image-makers go to create a positive image of industrial agriculture. The first season focuses on the introduction of PetroPellet, a new petroleum-based animal feed created by fictional industrial giant Animoil. PetroPellet promises to reduce industrial agriculture's dependence on oil by eliminating the need to grow, irrigate, fertilize and transport the vast amount of feed needed to raise livestock on factory farms. Before its new feed formula can forever reshape industrial agriculture, Animoil's plans go awry when a revealing security video goes viral sending Animoil and their spin master, Buck Marshall (Ray Wise — "Twin Peaks," "Mad Men," "24") of the Industrial Food Image Bureau, into damage control mode.

"Much of our marketing is aimed at making consumers more curious about where their food comes from and how it is prepared," said Mark Crumpacker, chief marketing and development officer at Chipotle. "By making complex issues about food production more understandable — even entertaining — we are reaching people who have not typically been tuned into these types of issues."

"Farmed and Dangerous" comes on the heels of two animated short films from Chipotle — 2013's "Scarecrow" and 2011's "Back to the Start." The initial season consists of four half-hour episodes, but the storyline is designed to be extended to additional seasons. The show stars Wise and Eric Pierpoint ("Parks and Recreation," "Big Love").

"We think of 'Farmed and Dangerous' as a values-integration rather than typical product-integration," said Crumpacker. "The show addresses issues that we think are important — albeit in a satirical way — without being explicitly about Chipotle. This approach allows us to produce content that communicates our values and entertains people at the same time."

Piro partner, executive producer and co-creator of the show, Daniel Rosenberg added, "We hope the show inspires other brands to communicate through more strategic and entertaining creative that is really representative of who they are, and what they are doing to make a better world."

The pilot episode of "Farmed and Dangerous" will be available for free on Hulu.com and via the Hulu Plus subscription service starting Feb. 17. Each additional episode will become available on the consecutive Mondays.

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