At Johnsonville, their employees are responsible for everything. And this year, that meant coming up with the commercials, too. In this commercial, we open on 18-year Johnsonville employee Jeff being interviewed on camera. As we hear him say, “In my Johnsonville commercial, we open up in the forest,” we see his vision come to life in stunning cinematic fashion. Not only does Jeff narrate his entire spot, but he also stars as the lead in his tranquil forest scene. Every time the Wisconsin native tries to take a bite of his breakfast sausage, a different forest animal comes up and starts asking him questions about sausage.

In Jeff’s words, “I thought it would be funny to have a commercial with talking animals.”

Johnsonville Sausage is one of America’s largest sausage companies and has been family owned and operated for more than 70 years. At the center of the Wisconsin-based company is a strong company culture called “The Johnsonville Way.” Established by the owner and chairman, Ralph Stayer, “This philosophy puts the people of the company first, empowering them to have a stake in business.

This year, Johnsonville took this mindset to the next level and did something only a family-owned company could do: let their members come up with the commercials.