PepsiCo announces first net zero plant for 2025

A beverage factory in Spain’s Basque Country will be Pepsico’s first net zero plant by 2025, after a €5 million electrification investment.

PepsiCo is advancing towards its goal of net zero emissions by 2040, and its Spanish beverage plant will be the company’s first facility to achieve net zero emissions in 2025 thanks to renewables and electrification.

The facility has been using 100% renewable electricity since 2015, but now PepsiCo has invested €5 million to electrify the plant and replace the remaining natural gas used in processes, saving the company 1,849 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. After a two-year pilot, the plant will be the first to officially reach net zero emissions next year.

In addition, PepsiCo has allocated another €27 million over the last five years for innovation and sustainability at its Basque Country plant – including new packaging equipment, closer warehousing to limit transportation, and process efficiency improvements.

Archana Jagannathan, Chief Sustainability Officer, PepsiCo Europe, said: “As one of the largest food and drink companies in the world, we know we have a critical role to play in addressing climate change. This huge milestone for our Spanish plant is a testament to our determination to transition to net-zero across our entire value chain, leading the move towards a more sustainable future for our planet and people.”

The company also recently achieved its water efficiency goal two years early thanks to rainwater harvesting, standards adoption and a coding adjustment.

PepsiCo climate targets

The agrifood giant is widely seen as one of the most climate-ambitious companies in the world, aiming to reduce absolute GHG emissions across its value chain by more than 40% by 2030 (against a 2015 baseline), and reach net zero emissions by 2040.

The company has broken down its near-term goal into a 75% cut in Scope 1 and 2 emissions and a 40% reduction in Scope 3.

As of 2022, the brand had managed to decrease Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 23%, though its Scope 3 emissions had increased by 7%, bringing its overall carbon footprint up by 4% from its 2015 baseline.

PepsiCo regenerative agriculture implementation

PepsiCo is now largely focused on implementing regenerative agriculture practices across its supply chain in a bid to reduce supplier emissions and improve water and biodiversity outcomes. 

In 2022, it increased its regenerative farming footprint from 345,000 to more than 900,000 acres globally, with a goal of converting 7 million hectares to these practices by 2030. This helped the brand improve agricultural water use efficiency by 14% and source 55% of its key ingredients more sustainably.

PepsiCo is also a founding member of the First Movers Coalition for Food, which aims to leverage the procurement power of 14 major food companies to source between US$10 billion and US$20 billion of low-carbon farming commodities and accelerate sustainable farming globally.