Initiative is latest step toward the business
and Foundation's goal to advance food security across the globe
through its Food for Good program
Building on its investments, three new efforts
aim to inspire communities to take action
PURCHASE, N.Y., July 5, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- In response to the
growing hunger crisis, 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, 345 million people globally face severe hunger. That
number is expected to grow as climate change, the COVID-19
pandemic, and global conflict continue to ravage our global food
system.
Partnering to address the hunger crisis, now and
tomorrow
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 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 substantial vulnerability within Africa, 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.
"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," said
C.D. Glin, Vice President, PepsiCo Foundation and Global Head of
Philanthropy, PepsiCo. "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."
Inviting people to be part of the solution
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.
To learn more, listen to the podcast, see the videos, and
purchase the tote, visit JoinFoodforGood.com.
"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 nonprofits 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 workâcollaborating 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. Learn more
at https://www.pepsico.com/our-impact/philanthropy/pepsico-foundation.
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. To learn more and shop, visit
www.feedprojects.com.
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SOURCE PepsiCo Foundation