PepsiCo and Soil Capital partner to scale regenerative agriculture practices among rapeseed oil farmers
Key takeaways
- PepsiCo and Soil Capital are partnering to implement regenerative agriculture, supporting over 70 farmers growing rapeseed oil for brands like Lay’s and Walkers.
- The initiative offers tailored agronomic guidance, digital carbon tracking tools, and financial rewards for practices like reduced tillage, cover cropping, and organic fertilization.
- This collaboration helps improve soil health, water efficiency, and carbon reduction, aligning with PepsiCo’s global goal to adopt regenerative practices on 10 million acres by 2030.
PepsiCo and Soil Capital are joining forces to scale regenerative agriculture across the UK, France, and Belgium to bolster supply chains of brands like Lays and Walkers.
The initiative will support farmers in adopting regenerative practices by providing digital tools, climate assessments, and financial incentives.
The Soil Capital partnership with PepsiCo will focus on France and Belgium, across 7,000 hectares of land used for oilseed rape farming by more than 50 farmers. In Britian, the partnership with PepsiCo is via its supplier, Cefetra, and also targets oilseed rape. This will also cover 7,000 hectares of land, involving more than 20 farmers.
PepsiCo is ramping up its regenerative agricultural goals by boosting the adoption of regenerative, restorative, or protective practices across 10 million acres globally by 2030.
Improving the PepsiCo supply chain
Under the new initiative, farmers in PepsiCo’s European supply chain will have access to Soil Capital’s expertise to move away from synthetic inputs toward organic fertilizers and growing cover crops, and to improve soil health, enhance water efficiency, prevent land degradation, and reduce carbon emissions.
The partnership will cover over 35,000 acres (14,000 hectares) of farmland, helping farmers tackle local challenges such as the heavy rainfall seen in France in 2024 and soil compaction experienced in the UK.
It will also provide financial incentives to pay for practices like reduced tillage, cover cropping, and organic fertilization. Farmers will also receive expert agronomic guidance throughout their transition and access to digital tools to track their carbon footprint.
“Farmers are at the heart of a sustainable food system, and regenerative agriculture is key to building resilience for our food supply, the environment, and farming communities,” says Archana Jagannathan, chief sustainability officer at PepsiCo Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
“Scaling these practices requires practical solutions tailored to local challenges. By working across the value chain, we can help remove barriers, accelerate adoption, and drive meaningful progress, reducing agricultural emissions while ensuring the long-term sustainability of our key ingredients.”
Chuck de Liedekerke, CEO of Soil Capital, adds, “This is a partnership founded on putting farmers first and working to transform the food system at scale and with pace. Backed by science and measurable environmental benefits, we look forward to supporting the transition, building resilient agricultural supply chains, and reimagining the relationship between society, land-use, food, and nature.”
The program is supported by a digital Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) system, which uses satellite technology and advanced models to track GHG emissions and soil carbon storage.
