Case Study – How PepsiCo Aims to Be Much More Water Efficient

adopting a basin-centric framework for hydro-resource planning empowers the organization to better manage input quality ja supply. For such initiatives, companys with bottling networks can align around basins and ecosystems to boost input availability while reducing risk to food production.

In africa, map each basin’s availability of clean inputs and monitor risk indicators across the supply chain. This what yields a transparent view of bottler performance, enabling a quality improvement trajectory and ensuring steady input flows to bottlers and plants.

To drive concrete gains, implement a set of initiatives such as joint supplier assessments, basin-level conservation planning, and shared metrics for resource-use intensity. This help managing risk while improving availability of inputs and protecting ecosystems in key basins.

Guidance for governance includes adopting a data-driven dashboard, linking supplier contracts to performance on environmental metrics, and leading training across bottlers. Targeting measurable reductions in resource-use per unit of output, and ensuring clean operations across the supply network, will raise quality and resilience in africa markets.

Case Study: PepsiCo’s Path to Improved Water Stewardship; – Why PepsiCo is focused on its value chain impact

Begin with a precise H2O balance across the value chain, mapping existing companys operations and key providers, to locate hotspots in watersheds that face stress and target reduced intensity within a three-year horizon.

Using a global perspective, the plan plays a key role by partnering with suppliers to roll out heat-recovery and steam integration; instead of isolated fixes, it cuts energy intensity per unit volume and reduces heat-driven demand, boosting resilience and planet-friendly viability at scale.

Includes a standard data package across facilities; the team uses a roberta-driven analytics engine to forecast risk, quantify the amount of H2O saved, and guide toward actions with clear KPIs that the team is able to track.

Advocacy engages families and local communities near watersheds; many programs include farmer partners, providers, and community leaders, and these efforts provide value while improving resilience and long-term viability.

case action: Implement an incremental program that moves toward scale across the footprint; prioritize last-mile improvements in packaging and on-site recovery, and advance toward measurable milestones, reporting progress with transparent metrics.

Strategic Focus: Water Stewardship Across PepsiCo’s Value Chain

Adopt a unified H2O stewardship program across the value chain with three pillars: supplier engagement, on-site efficiency, and ecosystem replenishment. Bind targets to baselines, launch pilots in high-risk markets, and commit to quarterly public reporting. The approach increases resilience, creates opportunities for partner growth, and sets the stage to scale best practices across suppliers and sites.

• Governance and oversight: Establish a Global H2O Stewardship Oversight Council, chaired by the COO; the CSO said the council will oversee progress, track risk for each basin, and escalate issues as needed. The council meets quarterly and publishes an annual public reporting with metrics and milestones to demonstrate accountability across markets.
• Supplier and farming engagement: Roll out a pilot with 40 top growers across 5 markets to demonstrate a 12% reduction in cubic meters of withdrawals per unit by 2026, using drip irrigation, soil-moisture sensors, and precision scheduling. Provide technical support and financing for equipment upgrades; partner with NGOs to help farmers implement best practices outside fields; share innovations to scale to most suppliers through a centralized learning hub, making help readily accessible to partners who are able to adopt quickly.
• Manufacturing and processing: retrofit the largest fryer lines with condensate recovery, low-flow cleaning, and closed-loop cooling. Target a 20–25% reduction in H2O intake per unit of output by 2025; install digital sensors for real-time monitoring and maintenance; the approach directly lowers greenhouse gas intensity as energy use drops and efficiency gains compound across the plant.
• Packaging and distribution: redesign cleaning cycles to reuse treated effluent within closed loops; deploy moisture recovery for HVAC and process cooling; prioritize zones that minimize liquid-use in finishing lines; leverage supplier contracts to promote best practices across the network and accelerate impact in constrained markets.
• Ecosystems and partnerships: collaborate with local ecosystems and public utilities to replenish H2O in basins; build partnerships with universities and NGOs to monitor hydrological indicators and public policy relevance; publish data to inform markets and policy; ensure opportunities reach smallholders, not only large suppliers, to maximize diffusion and impact.
• Risks and opportunities: map seasonal variability, regulatory changes, and competing demands; design risk-mitigation strategies including long-term sourcing contracts, targeted capital investment in water-saving technologies, and diversification of sources; the program increases resilience and opens opportunities in markets with tight resource constraints.
• Transition and scale: standardize measurement methods across sites; codify playbooks that capture innovations and enable the organization to transition from pilots to scalable solutions; maintain focus on high-impact processing steps, including fryer operations, to reach network-wide adoption within two to three years.

Direct coordination with communities and public stakeholders supports maintaining momentum and enables replenishment of H2O while benefiting local ecosystems. This approach aligns with the most critical process nodes and is designed to be adaptable, with a clear transition path toward long-term resilience and reduced greenhouse footprint.

Setting credible water targets with baselines, progress tracking, and accountability

Establish baselines using a three-year window (years 2020–2022) across global operations–manufacturing, ingredients, and warehouse logistics. Track freshwater use as a cubic volume per unit produced, with data disaggregated by site and product category. Example: global withdrawal averaged 130 million cubic meters annually; set goals to reduce by 15% by 2030 from the 2020 level, with reporting aligned to the same methodology. This creates a concrete path for reduced freshwater withdrawals year over year.

Progress tracking relies on a centralized reporting platform with quarterly dashboards that translate raw data into actionable insights. Reporting should quantify savings from efficiency measures such as optimized cooling, closed-loop processes, and on-site treatment of process-water. Include replenishment metrics and directly link results to freshwater use at product, region, and warehouse level to identify gaps and accelerate updates. This approach is helping teams pinpoint leaks and optimize usage.

Accountability is built by assigning site-level ownership for freshwater performance and embedding governance at the global level. Regular reviews with leadership, capital budgeting decisions tied to progress, and external reporting help maintain transparency across products and supply networks. Managing this accountability supports climate resilience and protects freshwater resources where it matters most.

Replenish and optimize supply: design a replenishment program that reduces withdrawals while maintaining product standards, including collaborations with startups to pilot efficiency ideas in ingredients handling and processing. Leverage direct supplier contracts for commitments to freshwater-use targets and implement sharing of best practices with foods and finished goods teams. The same approach scales across the global network and across warehouse facilities.

Maintaining momentum across years requires adaptive planning: revisit baselines every 2–3 years, adjust goals when climate variability or regulatory shifts occur, and keep a live data diary for the entire chain. Use example improvements from early pilots to broaden adoption through the global product portfolio and across warehouses, ensuring the level of stewardship remains high and the footprint consistently shrinks.

On-farm water management with suppliers: irrigation practices, soil moisture sensing, and crop choice

Implement a supplier-aligned program with suppliers across regions to recover production, protect soils and homes downstream, and strengthen resilience; create shared dashboards for their teams and for them to execute rapid decisions across systems and provide a clear vision for what’s been done and what remains to be done.

• Irrigation practices
  • Adopt ET-based scheduling using local climate data; deploy drip or micro-sprinkler systems to minimize losses; target irrigation depth reductions of 20–40% relative to baseline, measured in cubic meters per hectare.
  • Implement root-zone moisture control with sensors at 0–15 cm and 15–60 cm; connect readings to a central platform for real-time decisions and sharing across suppliers to align their actions, enabling smart choices for them.
  • Include runoff capture and on-farm recharge to recover residual supply and adapt to seasonal shifts; protect homes and ecosystems; though initial capital expenditure has been continued in many regions, the long-term costs are justified.
• Soil moisture sensing
  • Use a mix of capacitance probes and tensiometers calibrated for soil types; set thresholds to trigger irrigation only when plant-available moisture drops below target; share data with the supply network to streamline decisions.
  • Deploy sensor networks across representative zones to enable region-wide sharing of insights; connect to external dashboards to support processing and long-term planning.
  • Express soil moisture as volumetric content (cm3/cm3) or percentage; report cubic readouts in m3/ha when aggregated; provide consistent metrics to suppliers and their teams.
• Crop choice
  • Prioritize drought-tolerant crops in hot regions and rotate with cover crops to protect soil health; select varieties with stable yields under limited irrigation and align with processing timelines for beverage-grade inputs.
  • In greenhouse operations, leverage controlled environments to smooth supply and reduce reliance on outdoor systems; adapt crop portfolios to seasonality and external market signals.
  • Coordinate with suppliers to adjust input mixes, irrigation timing, and rotation plans; this shared approach increases resilience and value across the value chain; though changes require investment, the return is measurable and scalable globally.
• Supplier collaboration and governance
  • Establish sharing agreements that give suppliers access to a common data stream, enabling just decisions and transparent monitoring across regions.
  • Define roles for suppliers, their teams, and contractors; set KPIs for recovery, production, and processing milestones; track progress with cubic metrics where relevant.
  • Scale to a network of companies with external validators to protect the integrity of the system and to provide a long-term vision for sustainability; these steps have been continued and improved as more partners join.

Manufacturing water cycle optimization: reuse, treatment, and zero-discharge opportunities

Recommendation: Map all liquid streams and implement a closed-loop processing system that reuses purified process streams for cooling, cleaning, and equipment washing, achieving at least 85-90% recovery in the first 24 months and expanding to full site recovery within 3-4 years.

Initiate a cross-site audit across plant locations in world markets to identify reuse points during processing, focusing on condenser condensate, fryer effluent pre-treatment for cleaning, and landscaping irrigation where permitted by local watersheds rules. This approach reduces external discharge, lowers the footprint, and strengthens organization-wide commitment to sustainable development; it also helps streamline operations across sites.

Deploy a technology stack for processing streams: ultrafiltration for solids removal, nanofiltration or RO for high-recovery reconcentration, and energy-recovery devices; complement with evaporation or crystallization for zero-discharge opportunities where permitted. Engage with providers to install modular systems that integrate with existing infrastructure at plant sites, enabling capturing of brine for mineral recovery and improving footprint.

Governance and planning: the organization assigns clear targets and budgets, builds a cross-functional team (operations, maintenance, procurement, and external partners), and trains staff for continuous innovations. In the most advanced sites, pilots run during peak processing windows, then scale to other sites around the world. This streamlines data capture and decision-making, which aligns needs with infrastructure upgrades.

Engage external providers to access advanced treatment, analytics, and testing. This boosts innovations and reduces downtime during transitions. Use performance-based contracts tied to specific targets such as capture rate and discharge reduction. Though regulatory constraints vary by watershed, ensure development plans meet local requirements and share learnings across markets.

Track KPI sets such as capture rate, energy intensity per processed unit, distribution of streams to end-use points, and changes to the footprint after upgrades. Use dashboards to compare sites and identify the most effective configurations, then replicate across sites around the world. The approach supports a good business case with solid ROI and accelerates development of scalable solutions.

Leverage innovators within the organization and across markets to test new processing approaches; foster partnerships with universities and suppliers, and take inspiration from leaders in energy efficiency, including Tesla. This commitment to innovations drives continuous improvement and helps reduce the overall footprint while preserving product quality and market access.

Monitor watershed protections and engage with local authorities to ensure compliance during every deployment. Prioritize processing steps that deliver tangible outcomes for communities and the environment, while maintaining reliable supply to markets. This approach is not optional; it is a practical pathway to sustainable, resilient production across plant networks and sites.

Geography-based water risk assessment: mapping, scenario planning, and risk mitigation

Adopt a geography-based risk index to map exposure across 120 basins and 25 aquifer systems where operations occur, ranking regions by flood, drought, and intrusion risks. Link exposure scores to capital plans and partnerships to drive prioritization and savings.

Using a GIS-enabled framework, the model aggregates natural hazards, rainfall variability, and liquid-resource availability, assigning a total risk score per catchment. The roberta-led analytics team bases its inputs on data from state agencies and providers, ensuring accuracy for major sites and suppliers. The approach informs pilots and capital allocation around bottlenecks that affect families and communities whose livelihoods depend on steady availability.

Scenario planning across 2030 and 2050 horizons, with five drought/severity levels and three flood regimes, informs investments in decarbonization-related projects and risk-mitigation measures across the portfolio.

Mitigation actions include upgrading distribution networks, on-site resource reuse, precipitation harvesting, natural buffers, infiltration basins, and supplier diversification. These steps provide tangible savings and improve reliability, while aligning with pepsi brand sustainability ambitions and broader decarbonization goals. Each initiative is designed to operate within local regulations and state issues, reducing emission intensity and improving total availability across markets.

Governance includes a roberta-led cross-functional team, with partners across providers and markets, informing a pepsi portfolio of resilience investments. This structure facilitates rapid decision-making around issues and flood risk, enabling the organization to operate more resiliently in major markets.

Collaborative models with suppliers and communities: co-investment, transparency, and capacity building

Recommendation: Launch a three-year, tri-party co-investment program with key suppliers and communities to fund regenerative projects, backed by third-party audits and open data sharing across africa locations. The approach blends capital, equipment, and know-how to raise adoption rates, improve basin management, and deliver tangible efficiencies for families and local economies, while protecting the planet.

Operate with a clear foundation and shared standards. Establish a governance board comprising company reps, community leaders, and independent observers to ensure transparent progress reporting and risk management. Use open dashboards, publish pilot results, and invite third-party verification to build trust and advocacy around common ambitions.

Build capacity among communities and supplier teams through targeted efforts: hands-on training, equipment upgrades, and local fabrication of key components. Run pilots in multiple locations to accelerate adoption of innovative practices, share best-in-class methodologies, and identify ways to replicate success in other basins. Build a standard for collaborative procurement that reduces costs and fosters third-party partnerships.

Track progress with practical metrics: efficiency gains in basin operations, reduction of vapor losses in processes, and improvements in livelihoods for families. Use the data to refine the partnership model, identify high-impact projects, and set milestones for expansion during each year of the program. Align with standards and a foundation of mutually beneficial outcomes that support the most ambitious ambitions for the planet.