Papa John’s International, Inc. announced the promotion of Sean A. Muldoon to Chief Ingredient Officer.

“Under Sean’s leadership we have developed the Gold Standard for ingredients as well as one of the ‘cleanest' pizza ingredient labels among top national pizza chains,” said Steve Ritchie, President and COO, Papa John’s. “Sean and his team strive to give our customers the best ingredients and the best pizza possible. His efforts exemplify Papa John’s continued efforts to deliver high quality ingredients sourced from ethical, dedicated suppliers.”

In his new role of Chief Ingredient Officer, Mr. Muldoon will continue leading R&D, Quality Assurance and Supply Chain globally, including the expansion of Papa John’s Gold Standard ingredient specifications and its Clean Label Initiative. Different from most restaurant companies, Papa John’s organizational structure places R&D right beside Supply Chain and Quality Assurance, which gives it advantages in efficiency and improving its ingredients across the globe. Last year, Papa John’s made public that it invests over $100 million annually in its products, research and development initiatives.

Mr. Muldoon has been integral in improving ingredient quality, including the following industry leading efforts:

• Developed and implemented the BIBP (Better Ingredients. Better Pizza) Clean Label initiative by providing customers with more transparency about what goes into Papa John’s products and onto its pizzas.

• Eliminated all artificial flavors and synthetic colors from the entire food menu, including all pizza ingredients, pizza toppings, dessert items, and sauce selections.

• Introduced “Papa’s Lighter Choices” menu offerings and an online nutrition calculator, which provides a dynamic resource to enable consumers to make smarter choices which fit their lifestyle.

• Led efforts to reduce unwanted ingredients; including the elimination of MSG, BHA, BHT, cellulose and partially hydrogenated oils.

• Grilled chicken pizza toppings and chicken poppers will consist of poultry that is raised without human and animal antibiotics, as well as fed a 100-percent vegetarian diet, by summer 2016.