PepsiCo 2020 Sustainability Report Showcases Progress Towards a More Sustainable Food System

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Jun 29, 2021, 08:00 ET

PURCHASE, N.Y., June 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) published today its 2020 Sustainability Report, presenting its continued momentum to create positive change for the planet and people while acknowledging the significant work ahead to address pressing challenges in the food system, such as climate change, fertile topsoil loss, packaging waste and inequality. The report outlines how during a tumultuous year for consumers, employees and partners, PepsiCo, one of the world's leading food and beverage companies, advanced its social and sustainability agenda across its supply chain.

PepsiCo releases 2020 Sustainability Report

"We are working to transform the way we create shared value by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for the planet and people," said Ramon Laguarta, PepsiCo's Chairman and CEO. "This will make us a Better company, with purpose more deeply integrated into our business strategy. It will also make us Faster and Stronger, enabling accelerated growth and continued investment in our people, business and communities. And we hope it will make us an example, for our partners and our peers."

PepsiCo's sustainability approach targets every stage of its complex value chain, with the company sharing progress in its 2020 Sustainability Report against several key focus areas, such as:

Rethinking the growth and sourcing of crops, with highlights including:

Sustainably sourcing 100% of its direct commodities in 28 countries, with nearly 87% of direct commodities sustainably sourced globally as of 2020;
Announcing a new Positive Agriculture ambition that aims to spread regenerative practices across 7 million acres, improve the livelihoods of more than 250,000 people in its agricultural supply chain, and sustainably source 100% of its key ingredients, including key crops from third parties, by 2030.

Doing business in a sustainable and inclusive way, with highlights including:

Reducing absolute GHG emissions across our value chain by 5% as of 2020 versus a 2015 baseline;
Improving operational water-use efficiency by 15% in high water-risk areas as of 2020 versus a 2015 baseline;
Continuing efforts to help build a world where packaging never becomes waste, including offering products made from 100% rPET in 22 markets worldwide;
Working with The PepsiCo Foundation to invest more than $71 million globally in COVID-19 relief and provide over 145 million meals to those impacted by the pandemic
Announcing plans to transition to 100% renewable electricity globally, after achieving 100% renewable electricity for its U.S. direct operations in 2020. By the end of 2021, 15 countries in PepsiCo's direct operations are expected to be fully sourcing renewable electricity;
Doubling down on its science-based climate goal by targeting a reduction of absolute greenhouse gas emissions across its value chain by more than 40% by 2030 and pledging to reach net-zero emissions across its global operations by 2040;
Advancing its $570+ million Racial Equality Journey to elevate diverse voices within the company, among supply chain partners and communities, whilst helping to break down longstanding racial barriers.

Tapping into the power of its brands to encourage consumers to make positive choices for themselves and the planet, with highlights including:

Building on progress in reducing added sugars, sodium, and saturated fats across its portfolio. As of 2020:

48% of the PepsiCo beverage portfolio has 100 Calories or less from added sugars per 12 ounce serving, an improvement of 8 percentage points over the past three years (goal is 67% by 2025).
64% of the company's foods portfolio contains 1.3 milligrams or less of sodium per Calorie, an improvement of 8 percentage points over the past three years (goal is 75% by 2025).
71% of PepsiCo's foods portfolio contains 1.1 grams or less of saturated fat per 100 Calories, an improvement of 10 percentage points over the past three years (goal is 75% by 2025).

Embracing platforms like SodaStream and SodaStream Professional that offer convenient, sustainable options, without single-use packaging;
Expanding its portfolio to meet evolving consumer preferences, with options like Off The Eaten Path, bare, Hilo Life, Driftwell and bubly.

"2020 was a year of challenges and a year of change," said Jim Andrew, Chief Sustainability Officer, PepsiCo. "The challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic impacted every corner of the globe and highlighted the urgent need to partner and drive change toward a more sustainable and resilient food system. I'm proud that PepsiCo rose to the challenge in 2020, and there's no slowing down PepsiCo's ambition to drive a positive impact on our planet and the communities we serve."

The all-digital and interactive 2020 Sustainability Report includes a summary, progress against goals and other downloadable resources. The easy-to-navigate ESG topics section provides detailed information about the company's current policies and performance related to specific key issues. The report and downloadable assets are available here.

For more information, contact: [email protected]

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $70 billion in net revenue in 2020, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker, Tropicana and SodaStream. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including 23 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in Convenient Foods and Beverages by Winning with Purpose. "Winning with Purpose" reflects our ambition to win sustainably in the marketplace and embed purpose into all aspects of our business strategy and brands. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com.

Cautionary Statement

This release contains statements reflecting our views about our future performance that constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are generally identified through the inclusion of words such as "aim," "anticipate," "believe," "drive," "estimate," "expect," "goal," "intend," "may," "plan," "project," "strategy," "target" and "will" or similar statements or variations of such terms and other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted in such statements, including the impact of COVID-19; future demand for PepsiCo's products; damage to PepsiCo's reputation or brand image; issues or concerns with respect to product quality and safety; PepsiCo's ability to compete effectively; PepsiCo's ability to attract, develop and maintain a highly skilled and diverse workforce; water scarcity; changes in the retail landscape or in sales to any key customer; disruption of PepsiCo's supply chain; political or social conditions in the markets where PepsiCo's products are made, manufactured, distributed or sold; PepsiCo's ability to grow its business in developing and emerging markets; changes in economic conditions in the countries in which PepsiCo operates; future cyber incidents and other disruptions; failure to successfully complete or manage strategic transactions; PepsiCo's reliance on third-party service providers; climate change or measures to address climate change; strikes or work stoppages; failure to realize benefits from PepsiCo's productivity initiatives; deterioration in estimates and underlying assumptions regarding future performance that can result in an impairment charge; fluctuations or other changes in exchange rates; any downgrade or potential downgrade of PepsiCo's credit ratings; imposition or proposed imposition of new or increased taxes aimed at PepsiCo's products; imposition of limitations on the marketing or sale of PepsiCo's products; changes in laws and regulations related to the use or disposal of plastics or other packaging of PepsiCo's products; failure to comply with personal data protection and privacy laws; increase in income tax rates, changes in income tax laws or disagreements with tax authorities; failure to adequately protect PepsiCo's intellectual property rights or infringement on intellectual property rights of others; failure to comply with applicable laws and regulations; and potential liabilities and costs from litigation, claims, legal or regulatory proceedings, inquiries or investigations.

For additional information on these and other factors that could cause PepsiCo's actual results to materially differ from those set forth herein, please see PepsiCo's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent annual report on Form 10-K and subsequent reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. PepsiCo undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE PepsiCo, Inc.