ESG Topics A-Z
About Our Reporting
Why it matters
To PepsiCo:
Reporting transparently is part of our accountability to stakeholders and helps them to understand and support our sustainability journey. The rigorous systems and processes that enable us to report progress also serve to inform our internal strategy and decision-making. Establishing and maintaining leadership in reporting serves to cement our reputation and credibility as we work towards achieving our pep+ (PepsiCo Positive) ambition. In turn, this helps us to deliver on our agenda through stronger relationships with stakeholders and improved access to talent, to customers and to consumers.
To the World:
Our key stakeholders increasingly want to understand our sustainability performance and ambitions when deciding how to engage with our company and products. Giving stakeholders a clear, balanced and credible view of our ambitions and progress helps them to make informed decisions. Their impressions may influence their decisions about employment, investment, business partnership and consumption.
Approach
Our reporting is the primary way that PepsiCo informs key stakeholders about our sustainability ambitions and progress. Our stakeholders include investors, potential and current employees, customers and consumers, suppliers, NGOs, regulators, and others.
Understanding that each group’s needs differ, we publish a suite of reporting elements, targeted at various sets of stakeholders. We combine disclosure of strategy, policy, data and case studies, according to our understanding of public interest. Unless otherwise noted, our sustainability data reflects progress made during the calendar year (ending December 31), whereas our financial reporting corresponds with our fiscal year, which varies slightly from year-to-year. In 2022, our fiscal year ended December 31. Our reporting suite comprises:
- 2021 ESG Summary: An evolution from our prior Sustainability Report, our digital ESG Summary provides a high-level overview of our pep+ agenda and progress made during the year. It aims to demonstrate the integration between ESG and our business, and is designed to link seamlessly with ESG Topics A-Z for more detail and the latest updates. Users can also use the ‘Report Builder’ functionality to download a version tailored to their interests.
- 2021 ESG Performance Metrics: Time-series data for our key sustainability goals, intended to support ESG analysis, primarily for financial stakeholders, ESG raters and NGOs.
- Indices and framework responses and other topic-specific disclosures: These map our reporting to specific metrics established by key reporting frameworks including GRI, SASB, TCFD and CDP (climate, water and forest). It also includes specialized reporting, such as our annual Green Bond Report.
- ESG Topics A-Z: An evergreen deep-dive on roughly 50 sustainability-related topics designed to provide accessible, consistent information for those looking for greater depth on PepsiCo’s ESG strategy, management, policies, progress and partnerships.
Delivering PepsiCo’s sustainability reporting suite is generally managed and executed by the Sustainability Office’s Reporting Team, with significant partnership from Communications, Corporate Affairs and the various subject-matter experts (SMEs) of the topics covered in reporting. Validation of publicly-reported data is managed by the Sustainability Office’s Data Governance Team, in partnership with Legal and Control functions and SMEs. PepsiCo continues to increase the scope of data reviewed and independently assured by third parties; for more detail, see ESG Data Governance.
Frameworks
We aim to report in a consistent way that allows comparison over time of our own performance and between companies. To this end, we align with prominent ESG reporting frameworks preferred by investors. We also take into account the information needs of NGOs, customers and ESG raters.
As new frameworks arise, our Reporting Team, together with key internal partners, evaluates their utility and feasibility when deciding whether to adopt them. Factors considered include the intended audience, our ability to compile quantitative data to a requisite level of governance, risk associated with disclosure and materiality to the business.
In addition to the disclosure prescribed by external frameworks, PepsiCo uses its own metrics to gauge and communicate progress. For time-series data on these, see our 2021 ESG Performance Metrics.
Assurance
Stakeholders expect sustainability disclosures to be accurate and complete. To ensure this credibility, we have robust data governance in place and we have been engaging third-party assurers on select sustainability metrics for 15 years. We continue to expand the metrics we assure externally. In 2021, we extended third-party assurance to cover selected categories of scope 3 GHG emissions and packaging metrics. For 2021 data, limited independent assurance was obtained for the following metrics:
Apex Companies, LLC:Climate data
- Scope 1 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions
- Fuel use and combustion, including natural gas, propane, diesel fuel, gasoline, bio-fuels, and other direct combustion fuels
- Fugitive refrigerant emissions
- Scope 2 GHG emissions (location and market-based)
- Electricity consumption
- Purchased hot water
- Purchased steam
- Scope 3 GHG emissions (partial)
- Category 1 — Purchased goods and services
- Percentage of total purchased goods and services sourced from
sustainable agriculture
- Percentage of total purchased goods and services sourced from
- Category 2 — Capital goods
- Category 13 — End of life treatment of sold products
- Category 1 — Purchased goods and services
- Water associated with manufacturing operations
- Total water consumption
- Total water withdrawal
- Total water withdrawal at high-water risk sites
- Total water replenishment
- Waste (manufacturing and warehousing operations)
- Total waste generation
- Energy associated with manufacturing & warehouse operations, fleet operations, offices, and distribution centers
- Total energy consumption
- Total electricity consumption
- Total renewable electricity consumption
- Total U.S. electricity consumption
- Total renewable electricity percentage
- Packaging
- Percent virgin packaging
- Percent recycled content
- Global energy consumption associated with manufacturing & warehouse
operations, fleet operations, offices and distribution centers
- Total fuel consumption
- Total site electricity consumption
- Total renewable electricity consumption
- Total renewable electricity as a percentage of total electricity associated with manufacturing & warehouse operations, fleet operations, offices and distribution centers
- Total Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) allocated to PepsiCo, Inc. associated with electric power generation from renewable resources in the U.S.
- Total net production (convenient foods/dairy)
- Total net production (beverages)
Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA):
Product data
- Added Sugars Reduction: Percent of beverage volume with ≤100 Calories from added sugars per 12oz. serving in Top 26 global beverage markets
- Sodium Reduction: Percent of convenient foods portfolio volume with 1.3 milligrams of sodium or less per Calorie in Top 23 global convenient foods markets
- Saturated Fat Reduction: Percent of convenient foods portfolio with 1.1 grams of saturated fat or less per 100 Calories in Top 23 global convenient foods markets
Assurance statements are available for download on the relevant pages throughout ESG Topics A-Z and linked directly here for product goals and environmental metrics.
Progress
We continue to evolve and improve our reporting suite to meet increasing stakeholder demands for transparency and utility.
With the 2021 launch of pep+, we launched 17 new goals. In our 2021 reporting (delivered in 2022), we began to report on our progress. During this first year of reporting on pep+, data was not yet available for all our goals metrics. When this is the case, we have provided qualitative updates to demonstrate progress underway.
Our reporting continues to be recognized for excellence externally. In 2022, Corporate Secretary named PepsiCo Best ESG Reporting among large-cap companies for the third consecutive year. PepsiCo has also been recognized for its ESG reporting and performance by MSCI, Sustainalytics and CFI.co.



In 2021, PepsiCo received a AA rating in the MSCI ratings assessment.


ISS ESG QualityScores are current as of March 15, 2022
What's Next?
We are seeing increased calls for enhanced reporting, including in the U.S. and EU. We continue to monitor the regulatory environment and remain committed to delivering transparent and stakeholder-centric reporting as we work towards achieving our pep+ ambitions.
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Last Updated
March 1, 2023