Environmental Leader

PepsiCo has made the largest-ever corporate REC purchase, matching the purchased electricity used by all PepsiCo US-based manufacturing facilities, headquarters, distribution centers and regional offices.

The purchase, more than 1.1 billion kilowatt-hours, jumps PepsiCo to the top of the EPA’s list of top-25 green power purchasers, past Wells Fargo, the previous leader with 550 million kilowatt-hours. PepsiCo also becomes the top Fortune 500 purchaser. PepsiCo also becomes a member of the EPA’s Green Power Partnership, which is comprised of organizations that voluntarily purchase green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use.

The move also ecalates the green cola wars. Coca-Cola has been touting measures to reduce energy consumption at its two million square foot world headquarters by 23 percent and reduce its water consumption by nearly 15 percent.

PepsiCo is partnering with Sterling Planet on the purchase of the RECs.

Pepsi is one of the headline sponsors of the Live Earth concert on July 7 – other U.S. sponsors include Microsoft, Stonyfield Farm and DaimlerChrysler’s Smart division.

Last week, Frito-Lay, a division of PepsiCo, announced it would construct what it says will be the largest business-owned, solar power system in Arizona.