In response to the rising hunger crisis, and the inevitability of food insecurity globally, PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation, the philanthropic arm of PepsiCo, announced an expansion of its holistic efforts to advance food security. Through its global Food for Good initiatives, the Foundation is doubling down on efforts to increase equitable access to nutritious food by increasing its own investments as well as offering three new ways to engage people in fighting hunger.
Today, globally 345 million people face a severe hunger crisis. The figure is expected to grow as climate change has been a major concern accompanying the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and various turmoil related to global conflict.
Building on more than a decade of partnering with communities to advance food security through collaboration, PepsiCo Food for Good has committed more than $35 million since 2021 alone to increase access to nutritious food and increase the productivity and incomes of small-scale farmers. This year, it’s directing investments to interventions that have shown can build long-term solutions while it continues to address immediate hunger needs.
Increasing productivity and incomes of small-scale farmers with global partners including World Food Program USA in support of the United Nations (U.N.) World Food Programme and CARE along with leading local organizations, Food for Good focuses on economically empowering women through regenerative agriculture. To stave off the food crisis, it’s mobilizing multiple initiatives in communities where there’s a substantial vulnerability within Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia. Through these efforts, it aims to support 3.5 million farmers and their families between 2022 and 2024.
Increasing access to nutritious food, Food for Good provides students with increased access to the nutrition needed to learn and grow in multiple countries including the U.S. and through the Pioneer School Breakfast Nutrition Programme in South Africa while working to ensure the most vulnerable can access food with dignity through malnutrition interventions in Mexico and Guatemala.
In addition, PepsiCo is inviting corporations, organizations and community members to take action on global hunger. In a statement C.D. Glin, Vice President, PepsiCo Foundation and Global Head of Philanthropy said, “As one of the largest convenient food companies in the world, PepsiCo plays a critical role in leveraging our resources and capabilities to create and inspire local impact on hunger. We’re answering the call to address escalating global food insecurity and we plan to continue with our significant investments. But to make a meaningful impact, everyone with a role to play in our global food systems must be a part of the solution to address the immediate need and work on approaches to prevent us from landing in this place of crisis again.”
PepsiCo Food for Good is launching three ways for people to learn more about the worsening state of global food insecurity and be a part of the solution:
- Convening some of the brightest minds in food security, a new podcast Journey to Zero Hunger, explores real-world lessons and possible solutions to the global hunger crisis. Guests include food security luminaries including Ertharin Cousin, former Executive Director of the U.N. World Food Programme and CEO of Food Systems for the Future; Carin Smaller, Executive Director, Shamba Centre for Food & Climate; and Marc Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League as well as cultural contributors including Lauren Bush Lauren, Founder of FEED; Kyle Rudolph, NFL tight end and member of GENYOUth’s Board of Directors; and Chef JJ Johnson, James Beard award winner and host of Just Eats.
- A new Food for Good Changemaker video series showcases different ways community leaders around the world are addressing hunger to build resilience in their own backyards. These stories reveal underlying factors of food insecurity and highlight the heroic actions ordinary people are taking. For example, Molly Birungi, a farmer and mother of three in Uganda, empowered her village to adopt new agricultural and marketing practices. She also encouraged other farmers in her village to adopt new and cutting-edge technologies in agriculture, resulting in an increase in crop yields by more than 13% and an increase in the average household gross income for participants by more than 60%.
- Food for Good is partnering with impact-driven brand, FEED, to introduce a limited-edition tote bag. Each purchase will provide 10 nutritious meals to children around the world through No Kid Hungry, the U.N. World Food Programme and the Akshaya Patra Foundation.
“The fight against hunger is an issue that knows no borders. In the last few years, we’ve seen an already overwhelming global issue exacerbated further. Often people aren’t sure where to begin or how to make a difference, which was my inspiration for founding FEED in 2007,” said Lauren Bush Lauren, Founder of FEED. “That’s why our collaboration with PepsiCo Food for Good is so important. We’re inviting consumers to join us in the fight to end childhood hunger in a way that is tangible, by purchasing and carrying a tote that gives back and allows them to be ambassadors for the cause when they carry it.”
This work is part of the company’s pep+ (PepsiCo Positive) strategic end-to-end transformation to inspire positive change for the planet and people. PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation also are participating in the Zero Hunger Private Sector Pledge, aiming to invest $100 million in positive agriculture and food security initiatives by 2030 to help minimize waste and ensure a more resilient food supply.
In response to the growing hunger crisis, PepsiCo and the Foundation announced in 2021 Food for Good’s expansion to 28 countries worldwide with a goal to provide access to nutritious food to 50 million people by 2030 (against a 2021 baseline). Through Food for Good, PepsiCo has delivered more than 245 million meals since 2009, reached 41 million people across the world since 2016, and has partnered with more than 60 non-profits across 28 countries to ensure the company is implementing local solutions that meet the unique challenges of each community.
About the PepsiCo Foundation
Established in 1962, the PepsiCo Foundation, the philanthropic arm of PepsiCo, invests in the essential elements of a sustainable food system with a mission to support thriving communities. Working with non-profits and experts around the globe, we’re focused on helping communities obtain access to food security, safe water and economic opportunity. We strive for tangible impact in the places where we live and work—collaborating with industry peers, local and international organizations, and our employees to affect large-scale change on the issues that matter to us and are of global importance.
About FEED Projects
FEED is an impact-driven lifestyle brand founded by Lauren Bush Lauren, making products that help feed the children of the world. Across a variety of categories, from bags to jewelry to home goods, the sale of each FEED product provides direct meal donations to children in need across the globe. Through on the ground partners, FEED has helped provide more than 125 million meals to-date since 2007.
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