For nearly a decade, PepsiCo has dedicated itself to finding water conservation solutions within the company and across the world and is now reaping the benefits that come with widespread sustainability practices. PepsiCo has announced that in 2015, it reduced its operational water use per unit of production by 26% vs. a 2006 baseline.
This reduction far exceeded the goal the corporation had for the year at 20%. These water conservation efforts saved PepsiCo more than $80 million between 2011 and 2015. As part of a larger sustainability agenda, the corporation has saved more than $600 million over the past five years in a variety of water, energy and waste-reduction initiatives.
“All across PepsiCo, we continue to find innovative new ways to grow our business while using fewer natural resources – water among them,” says Dr. Mehmood Khan, PepsiCo Vice Chairman and Chief Scientific Officer, Global Research and Development. “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.”
In addition to helping its own bottom line, PepsiCo’s efforts have included assisting water-stressed areas around the world. Through the PepsiCo Foundation, the company has worked with non-profit organizations in reaching 9 million people with safe water access since 2006.
“Access to safe water is an essential building block for improved social, economic and health conditions in communities around the world,” says Khan. “Companies have an important role to play in solving global water challenges, and we must continuously seek ways to apply our unique capabilities and expertise to conserve this most precious resource.”
Other recent sustainability efforts have produced impressive results. PepsiCo has reduced absolute water usage in operations by approximately 3.2 billion liters in 2015. Additionally, it has joined in a coalition with The Nature Conservancy in a five-year partnership called Recycle for Nature to protect U.S. drinking water sources by recycling bottles and cans.
