In its latest ESG Summary, PepsiCo claims that it incorporated 18% recycled plastic into its packaging last year and reduced its absolute tonnage of virgin plastic packaging by 6% between 2024 and 2025.
Reportedly, PepsiCo used 2.0 million metric tons of plastic in its key packaging markets. Regarding primary packaging, the company claims to have reduced its absolute tonnage of virgin plastics by 6% year-on-year, and to have implemented 18% recycled plastic.
Now it expects 94% of its primary and secondary packaging portfolio to be reusable, recyclable, or compostable by design by 2030.
“We’re systematically designing packaging to be reusable, recyclable, or compostable, while incorporating more recycled content across our global portfolio of primary and secondary packaging in key packaging markets,” the report reads. “Our vision is to never see packaging become waste.”
“At the same time, we know that achieving our broader packaging goals will require more circular solutions and system-wide change beyond any one company’s efforts, and we continue to face headwinds such as gaps in recycling infrastructure,” comments Ramon L. Laguarta, chairman and chief executive officer at PepsiCo.
The report highlights PepsiCo’s ongoing commitment to invest in deposit return systems, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) frameworks, and circular economy infrastructure that ‘scales beyond our own supply chain and into the world’.
In its ESG Summary for 2024, PepsiCo reported that 93% of its primary and secondary packaging in key markets was reusable, recyclable, or compostable, and emphasized its plans to phase out hard-to-recycle materials like non-recyclable labels.
It also pointed to a 5% reduction in virgin plastic tonnage and a 15% increase in recycled plastic across its primary packaging in key markets between 2023 and 2024.
PepsiCo previously scaled back its packaging targets. Whereas it once sought to achieve a 20% reduction in absolute tonnage of virgin plastic derived from non-renewable sources by 2030, it now aspires to an average year-over-year reduction of 2%.
Similarly, its goal to achieve 100% recyclable, compostable, biodegradable, or reusable packaging by 2025 was revised to 97% reusable, recyclable, or compostable primary and secondary packaging in its key packaging markets – removing biodegradability from the scope.
It also targeted a minimum threshold of 40% recycled content for its primary plastic packaging by 2035 or sooner.
By making these changes, PepsiCo said it was being transparent about global factors outside its control, such as China’s rPET bans for food-grade packaging and India’s more recent decisions to allow rPET in beverage and food packaging.
PepsiCo’s packaging targets fall under PepsiCo Positive (pep+) – a business strategy said to bolster the brand’s supply chain resilience while aligning with consumer preferences, creating long-term value for shareholders, and protecting people, resources and communities across its operations.
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