PepsiCo Announces Agriculture Accelerator Projects to Support Farmer Livelihoods, Scale Sustainable Innovation and Accelerate Regenerative Agriculture Across the Globe

Rhea-AI Summary

PepsiCo (PEP) announced the third year of its global agriculture program, the Positive Agriculture Outcomes (PAO) Accelerator, with over $30 million in investments to support nearly 40 agricultural projects through 2028. The program aims to address urgent challenges facing agriculture and offers co-investment to accelerate diverse and results-driven Positive Agriculture projects, as well as funding for ag-tech start-ups. PepsiCo's goal is to spread the adoption of regenerative farming practices across 7 million acres by 2030, improve the livelihoods of more than 250,000 people in its agricultural supply chain, and sustainably source 100% of its key ingredients.

Positive

• PepsiCo's PAO Accelerator will catalyze over $30 million in investments to support nearly 40 agricultural projects through 2028
• The program aims to address some of the most urgent challenges facing agriculture today
• PepsiCo's goal is to spread the adoption of regenerative farming practices across 7 million acres by 2030
• The company aims to improve the livelihoods of more than 250,000 people in its agricultural supply chain
• PepsiCo seeks to sustainably source 100% of its key ingredients

Negative

• None.

The Positive Agriculture Outcomes Accelerator will now catalyze more than $30 million in investments to support nearly 40 agricultural projects through 2028

PURCHASE, N.Y., Nov. 21, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP) today announced the third year of its global agriculture program, the Positive Agriculture Outcomes (PAO) Accelerator, by backing eight new innovation projects across nine countries. PepsiCo's continued investment aims to address some of the most urgent challenges facing agriculture today, while moving the company's pep+ (PepsiCo Positive) agenda forward.

PepsiCo's PAO Accelerator offers local farming communities co-investment to accelerate diverse and results-driven Positive Agriculture projects, as well as funding for ag-tech start-ups that offer proven products or technology with the potential to scale. This year's innovations will build resiliency through climate related analysis, improve soil health, and strengthen farms' climate resilience – engaging farmers in Australia, Colombia, Egypt, India, Iraq, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, and the United Kingdom.^[1]  

"We can't motivate systemic change on our own, and our PAO Accelerator continues to provide a forum for farming communities to bring forth ideas and opportunities, and receive the funding needed to get promising innovation off the ground," said Margaret Henry, Vice President, Sustainable and Regenerative Agriculture at PepsiCo. "With this latest round of projects, we're not only fostering this powerful network of innovators across global farmland, but growing closer to achieving a more regenerative future, with farmers' insight at the forefront."

Among the roster of 2023 projects, will be a project with Australian grain growers to test and validate soil health management practices to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions on-farm. In Colombia, funding will support increasing potato crop quality and yield by installing sprinkler irrigation systems that will also reduce water use. And, in collaboration with 3Keel, a UK-based landscape innovation firm, funding will help connect Europe-based organizations interested in supporting regenerative solutions with local farmland managers who can deliver measurable, sustainable outcomes.

"Investing in pioneering agriculture projects is a key action in combatting the evolving climate crisis and setting farmers around the world, up for long-term success," shared Tom Curtis, Director, 3Keel Group Ltd. "Support from PepsiCo's PAO Accelerator will powerfully enable our team to work with local farmers across Europe to further broker the partnerships needed to accelerate climate action on the ground to strengthen agricultural supply chains for the long-term."

Since its launch in 2021, the PAO Accelerator has supported diverse projects – from adopting efficient irrigation systems in response to increased drought, developing kilns to turn agricultural waste into fertilizer, improving soil health, and more.

"Speaking from experience, prioritizing and investing in climate-smart innovation can uncover solutions for our entire global agricultural supply chain," said Chris Seymour, Seymour Farms, Canada, and 2022 PAO Accelerator funding recipient. "With support from PepsiCo's PAO Accelerator, my team gained new insights that helped improved soil health and profitability for my business, even as weather conditions became more unpredictable over time."

As part of its pep+ transformation, PepsiCo's Positive Agriculture agenda prioritizes investment, innovation, and robust collaboration with our farming partners to deliver impact around the world. The scalable outcomes and ongoing investments in agricultural innovation via PepsiCo's PAO Accelerator continue to support the company's goal to spread the adoption of regenerative farming practices across 7 million acres by 2030, improve the livelihoods of more than 250,000 people in its agricultural supply chain, and sustainably source 100% of its key ingredients.

Learn more about PepsiCo's Positive Agriculture commitments here.

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 $86 billion in net revenue in 2022, driven by a complementary beverage and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay's, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to be the global leader in beverages and convenient foods by winning with pep+ (PepsiCo Positive). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts sustainability and human capital at the center of how we will create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com, and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn @PepsiCo.

Media Contact:
mediarelations@pepsico.com

Editor's Footnote:
[1] 2023 projects as follows:

PROJECT NAME	COUNTRY	PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Cool Soil Initiative	Australia	Extending PepsiCo's Cool Soil Initiative to support West Australia's oat sourcing region – testing and validating sustainable practices aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions on-farm, improve sustainability, yield, and profitability.
Improved soil health with new cover crops	Colombia	Identifying how cover crops can improve soil erosion, soil fertility and fixation of nitrogen, to help reduce emissions and improve biodiversity.
Sprinkler irrigation system installation	Colombia	Improving farmers' yields by increasing the amount of viable planting areas on farms and water reduction efforts by introducing low-pressure, sprinkler irrigation systems.
Precision fertilizer use	India	Driving adoption of precision fertilizers to improve soil health and support potential greenhouse gas emissions reduction within the market's potato supply chain.
Water availability analysis	Iraq	Conducting a water availability study to map current risks and build an action plan for 2030 building resiliency to the potato supply chain
Guidance for smallholder farms transitioning to sustainable sourcing	Egypt	Introducing new ways of working to benefit local smallholder farmers and enable 100% sustainable sourcing for direct potato and corn by 2030.
"Weather Station" installation	Pakistan	Improving grower resilience and timely decisions by deploying "weather station" technology on-site to deliver more accurate data to strengthen farming operations.
Accelerating regenerative agriculture practices by building our partners capabilities	Romania, Poland, UK	In collaboration with 3Keel, a UK-based landscape innovation firm, funding will help connect Europe based organizations interested in supporting regenerative solutions with local farmland managers who can deliver measurable, sustainable outcomes.

 

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SOURCE PepsiCo, Inc.

FAQ

What is the Positive Agriculture Outcomes (PAO) Accelerator and how much investment will it catalyze?

PepsiCo's (PEP) PAO Accelerator will catalyze over $30 million in investments to support nearly 40 agricultural projects through 2028.

What are the main goals of PepsiCo's PAO Accelerator?

The program aims to address some of the most urgent challenges facing agriculture today, spread the adoption of regenerative farming practices across 7 million acres by 2030, improve the livelihoods of more than 250,000 people in its agricultural supply chain, and sustainably source 100% of its key ingredients.

What kind of projects does the PAO Accelerator support?

The PAO Accelerator supports diverse projects, from adopting efficient irrigation systems in response to increased drought, developing kilns to turn agricultural waste into fertilizer, and improving soil health.

How does PepsiCo aim to achieve its goals through the PAO Accelerator?

PepsiCo aims to achieve its goals through co-investment to accelerate diverse and results-driven Positive Agriculture projects, as well as funding for ag-tech start-ups.