PepsiCo And The Nature Conservancy Partner For Sustainability

PepsiCo and The Nature Conservancy are joining forces to encourage consumers to recycle more often and to help protect sources of drinking water sources throughout the US.

As part of a new five-year partnership called “Recycle for Nature,” PepsiCo will expand the availability of recycling bins in the US, beginning at gas stations and convenience stores. According to a PepsiCo national survey, 81 percent of Americans say they would recycle beverage containers at a retail location if proper bins were available.

This project is being done as part of PepsiCo’s collaboration with Walmart to increase recycling and investment in the Closed Loop Fund.  The Fund provides financing to municipalities and other organizations whose goal is to provide people access to recycling when and where they need it.

In addition to giving consumers additional recycling bins, the “Recycle for Nature” program will also provide consumers a way to help drinking water conservation efforts via recycling.

For every one point increase in the US beverage container recycling rate each year, PepsiCo will make an additional donation to The Nature Conservancy with a goal of reaching $1 million each year for five years. Currently the US beverage container recycling rate is at 42 percent, according to the American Beverage Association.

The program’s goal is to save and restore one billion gallons of water over five years in rivers that supply water to over 35 million people across nine states. These rivers include the Colorado River, Denver’s Front Range Forests, the Verde River in Arizona, the Kings River in Northwest Arkansas and North Carolina’s Cape Fear River.

PepsiCo and The Nature Conservancy will kick off the partnership by expanding a pilot program that PepsiCo has been running in Tulsa, Okla., since 2012 in collaboration with Kum & Go convenience stores and gas stations.

Earlier this year PepsiCo, together with the other “Big 10” food and beverage companies, was cited in an Oxfam report for not doing enough to tackle climate change.