CB BureauIn the beginning of this week, the president of the UK arm
of PepsiCo said that business ‘needs sticks as well as carrots’, to ensure that
it takes action against climate change. Richard Evans said this at a meeting
called ‘What next after Cancun?’ Evans meant that the ‘stick’ for business was
a robust carbon price, and that it would add certainty for business and aid
planning. By ‘carrot’, he meant that there was a need for simplification of
existing regulations.
PepsiCo has made environmental issues a key part of its CSR
activity. PepsiCo’s website claims that the
company’s responsibility is to continually improve all aspects of the world in
which it operates ”
environment, social and economic.
The company’s CSR initiatives are based on
three broad elements ”
human sustainability, environment sustainability and
talent sustainability.
Human sustainability
PepsiCo says that to nourish consumers is
their fundamental commitment. It begins with product innovation and
transformation, extends to marketing and labelling commitments that make the
smart choice for consumers, and continues with support for research and
development programmes to advance public health around the world. Finally, it balances
the entire energy equation through community outreach programmes designed to
empower and motivate consumers to adopt healthier, more active lifestyles.
The progress that PepsiCo has made under the ‘human
sustainability’ pillar includes reformulating some of its products to improve
their nutritional profile, while launching products that reflect consumer
demand for healthier and nutritious snacks and beverages. PepsiCo partners with
governments, health officials and non-governmental organizations to help
address obesity concerns, and it continues to provide consumers with new
product choices and innovations.
As part of a
coordinated, global private-sector coalition, the company’s website has listed
out five key global commitments for the next five years:
- Innovate product composition and availability to provide healthier
product options that address both excess and deficient consumption of specific
nutrients and calories. Clearly, micronutrient deficiencies are a pressing need
in developing nations and could be addressed in part through functional foods. - Provide clear nutrition information to consumers, including consumers in
regions where nutrition information is not required. - Globalize individual company and regional measures to ensure responsible
marketing and advertising of foods and non-alcoholic beverages to children,
bringing increasing proportions of the industry into the fold. - Target individual company communications and forge public-private
partnerships to cultivate awareness and adoption of healthier lifestyles
worldwide. - Commit our time, expertise and resources to support public-private
partnerships to accomplish the objectives of the WHO Strategy.
Environment sustainability
Environment sustainability is based on
PepsiCo’s commitment to be responsible stewards of the planet’s resources. The
company claims that it is reducing water usage through conservation, reuse and
replenishment, and that it works with local communities to provide access to
clean water.
PepsiCo continues to work to further reduce
its water and electricity consumption, and improve its packaging
sustainability. Across the world, PepsiCo has reused water from its processing
plants and has worked with local communities to provide access to clean water,
while supporting farmers to deliver ‘more crop per drop’.
Talent sustainability
The company’s commitment to talent
sustainability means it is continually working to develop and retain
exceptional people.
It is understood that without a broad base
of talented people, a company cannot continue to deliver exceptional results.
The company tries to attract, hire, develop and retain the most talented
people. By valuing its employees, supporting their ability to work effectively
together, and providing them with the tools they need to succeed, PepsiCo is
ensuring that talented people, regardless of any of their demography ”
caste,
creed, religion, etc., get an equal-opportunity environment to succeed.
INITIATIVES
HIV/AIDS initiative
PepsiCo
India embarked on the HIV/AIDS awareness journey in 2005, along with
International Labor Organization (ILO). It has built the whole programme to
build capacity within and externally, and focused on the ‘each one, teach one’
approach to ensure sustainability.
The programme was kicked off by creating a pool of master
trainers and peer educators who could cascade the programme across all work
locations, along with NGOs who were also trained along with PepsiCo employees.
Today, there are over 58 master trainers and 175 peer educators spreading awareness.
The initiative was awarded the TERI Corporate Award for
Business Response to HIV/AIDS in 2009.
Making
a difference
‘Make a Difference’ to the lives of girls is the
newly formed association with Salaam Balak Trust, an NGO that runs a shelter
for homeless girls in Gurgaon. The orientation programme saw enthusiastic
participation from employees and their families. Now, to strengthen the
association, employees and, in some cases, even family members of the employees
regularly visit the shelter on pre-assigned slots to share their knowledge and
technical/soft skills (computers, art and craft, preparing healthy foods, etc.)
to prepare them for a better future.
Get
active
The ‘Get Active’, a programme focused on good
nutrition and active lifestyle for children, was implemented in schools in
collaboration with prominent NGOs including Hriday, Swashrit and the Indian
Medical Association. The objective was to raise awareness on the importance of
balanced nutrition and regular physical activity for a healthy lifestyle among
school children.
‘Get Active’ reached some 250,000 children
across six metros and an estimated 240 schools in 2008 – a significant 150 per
cent rise over the 100,000 children reached across two metros in 2007. In 2009,
Get Active reached nearly 300,000 children across 10 cities and 350 schools.
Solid
waste management programme
PepsiCo India continues to strengthen its
solid-waste-management initiatives in partnership with Exnora, an environmental
NGO. This income-generating partnership provides a clean environment to more
than 450,000 people across Pammal, Chennai, Nagapattinam, Tenkasi and Cuddalore
in Tamil Nadu, Sangareddy in Andhra Pradesh, and Panipat in Haryana.
Households segregate their biodegradable
waste from their recyclable waste. Biodegradable waste is then converted into
organic manure through the process of vermi-culture.
The programme recycles 97 per cent of
household garbage; this project provides livelihood to more than 500 community
members. Waste such as plastic, waste paper and tetra packs are recycled in the
process.
Community awareness programme includes
door-to-door campaigns and street plays to motivate people to segregate organic
and inorganic garbage at source to enable recycling.
Every aspect of the programme is built
around community and government participation to help the programme evolve into
a self-sustaining model.
The unique PepsiCo-Exnora initiative in
Pammal was awarded the environmental Golden Peacock Award for Innovation in
2006. Zero Solid Waste Centre in Pammal was recognized as a model project by
UNICEF in 2007. The PepsiCo-Exnora Waste to Wealth programme won the BSE
NASSCOM Social and Corporate Governance Award 2008.
About
PepsiCo Foundation
As PepsiCo’s philanthropic anchor, PepsiCo
Foundation is responsible for providing charitable contributions to eligible
non-profit organizations. The foundation is committed to developing sustainable
partnerships and programmes in underserved regions that provide opportunities
for improved health, environment and education.
Through grant making, associate programmes
and disaster response, PepsiCo Foundation seeks to help impoverished people and
communities in the US and around the world.
PepsiCo Foundation was established in 1962
with an initial focus on promoting health and wellness within PepsiCo. Later,
the foundation’s focus was expanded to funding fitness education for youth.
In
1998, PepsiCo became the first corporation to become a mission sponsor of the
YMCA of the USA.
Check out the foundation’s contributions
here: http://www.pepsico.com/Purpose/PepsiCo-Foundation/Contributions.html
PepsiCo and PepsiCo Foundation have since
funded numerous initiatives promoting active lifestyles and educating consumers
about making smart dietary choices. The key principle behind all of these
efforts is balancing nutrition and physical activity.
Today, the foundation has evolved its goals
to reflect the needs of underserved populations – including nutrition and
activity, safe water and water-usage efficiencies, and education and
empowerment – and has extended its grant making to the global community. In
2009 alone, PepsiCo Foundation contributed $27.9 million towards charitable
causes. The foundation also provides disaster-response assistance.