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PepsiCo Exceeds Global Water Stewardship Goals

PepsiCo, Inc. today announced continued progress against the company's strategy to help protect and conserve global water supplies and provide people access to clean, safe water to communities around the world.

In 2015, PepsiCo reduced its operational water use per unit of production by 26 percent versus a 2006 baseline. This exceeded the company's previously stated goal to reduce operational water use by 20 percent by the end of 2015.

Published 8 years ago | About a 4 minute read

PepsiCo's water conservation efforts saved the company more than $80 million between 2011-2015. This is part of PepsiCo's broader environmental sustainability agenda, which has delivered more than $600 million in cost savings over the past five years through the continued progress of the company's water, energy, packaging and waste-reduction initiatives.

PepsiCo also continues to expand its efforts to provide access to safe water in water-stressed communities around the world. Through the PepsiCo Foundation, the company has partnered with leading non-profit organizations to now reach 9 million people with safe water access since 2006, far exceeding its original goal of 6 million by the end of 2015.

"Access to safe water is an essential building block for improved social, economic and health conditions in communities around the world," said Dr. Mehmood Khan, PepsiCo Vice Chairman and Chief Scientific Officer, Global Research and Development. "Companies have an important role to play in solving global water challenges, and we must continuously seek new ways to apply our unique capabilities and expertise to conserve this most precious resource.

"All across PepsiCo, we continue to find innovative new ways to grow our business while using fewer natural resources—water among them," Khan continued. "By driving down our operational water use and replenishing water within the local watershed, promoting innovative agricultural practices that yield more crop per drop, and enabling access to safe water and sanitation for millions of people, we have achieved important progress and are committed to doing much more in the years ahead."

PepsiCo has a comprehensive and ambitious global water stewardship strategy. The company's progress to date includes:

Reducing absolute water usage in its operations by approximately 3.2 billion liters in 2015, while still growing its beverage and snacks manufacturing volume. In Jordan, PepsiCo's business has cut water usage by more than 40 percent per unit of production since 2006.
Launching the Sustainable Farming Initiative in 2013 to help growers operate more efficiently and meet PepsiCo's social, economic and environmental standards—including the development of effective water management plans to preserve local water quality. Today, the Sustainable Farming Initiative has expanded to growers across 15 countries, with active programs representing over 28,000 growers in its supply chain.
Developing and deploying a direct seeding machine for rice farmers in India, enabling participating growers to save more than 10 billion liters of water since 2013.

The PepsiCo Foundation has made access to safe water one of its cornerstone grant-making priorities. Examples of PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation's water-related partnerships include:

Partnering with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) since 2008 to reach underserved communities across Latin American and the Caribbean with water solutions. In 2016, PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation announced a five-year renewal of the partnership, which will start off with "From Source to Home," a program focused on water and sanitation that will use a U.S. $5 million dollar grant from the PepsiCo Foundation to work to improve the lives of approximately 850,000 people by 2025. - Supporting the Safe Water Network (SWN) in establishing iJal small water enterprises in India that currently provide self-sustaining safe water access stations to over 600,000 people. Next month, SWN will launch its 150th iJal station, reaching the half-way point of its goal to establish 300 iJal stations across India.

Contributing to Recycle for Nature, a five-year partnership between PepsiCo and The Nature Conservancy that aims to protect U.S. drinking water sources by recycling beverage bottles and cans. The program recently added the American River Headwaters to the initiative. By contributing to the American River project, which will take place over a three-year period, Recycle for Nature can work to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires on more than 10,000 acres of forest, safeguard water quality and advance research on the link between healthier watershed conditions and water supply.

PepsiCo's global water efforts are part of the company's broader commitment to Performance with Purpose, a fundamental belief that business success is inextricably linked to the sustainability of the world around us. For nearly 10 years, PepsiCo has committed to growing its business in ways that meet the changing expectations of consumers and help solve complex challenges facing society. By offering healthier products, using fewer natural resources and investing in communities, PepsiCo if focused on creating conditions that enable both business and society to thrive.

To learn more about Performance with Purpose and download PepsiCo's Sustainability Report, please visit www.howwillwe.com.