Pizza Hut teams up with Dairy Farmers of America to cut GHG emissions

11 Aug 2022 --- Pizza Hut is partnering with Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) and dairy suppliers to provide participating farmers with the technology and data needed to help reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

As part of the announcement, Pizza Hut, and its parent company, Yum! Brands will leverage its national scale by partnering with DFA and dairy suppliers to help make its supply chain more environmentally friendly.

The fast food chain has begun working alongside DFA and dairy suppliers to enroll interested dairy farm families within their supply chain. Through the Farmers Assuring Responsible Management and Environmental Stewardship (FARM ES) evaluation, the dairy farm families will participate in annual farm-level GHG and energy footprinting.

By 2025, the end of the three years, Pizza Hut aims to source 50% of the dairy used to make its pizza cheese from dairy farms enrolled in the FARM ES program.

Delivering precise nutrition
Once enrolled, farms will receive an SCiO cup, the world’s fastest lab-grade dry matter analyzer, allowing farmers to access instant dry matter analysis of their cows’ feed, helping deliver precise nutrition and – in turn – produce milk more efficiently, create less waste and reduce on-farm GHG emissions.

Pizza Hut will leverage its national scale by partnering with DFA and dairy suppliers to help make its supply chain more environmentally friendly.The farms will also be eligible to apply for funds to implement sustainability projects while continuing to recruit DFA members throughout the partnership actively.

In addition to using SCiO cups, farmers participating in the program will have the chance to adopt other practices and technologies such as feed management enhancements and energy-efficient lighting.

“With this sustainability initiative, we’re able to utilize technology along with our dairy partners in a way that helps the environment while still delivering the iconic taste that pizza lovers have come to expect from our offerings,” says Penny Shaheen, head of food innovation and technology at Pizza Hut.

Since Pizza Hut’s inception in 1958, it has worked with the same family-owned business to supply 100% real cheese made with whole milk to top its pizza and that commitment to the highest-quality cheese will remain unchanged, according to the company.

“In 2020, DFA became the first US dairy cooperative to set a science-based target to reduce both direct and value chain greenhouse gas emissions, and this partnership with Pizza Hut and Dairy Farmers of America is an important piece in those continued efforts,” adds Hansel New, director of sustainability programs at DFA.

“We appreciate partners supporting our dairy farm families by investing in meaningful, innovative technologies and practices that advance environmental stewardship while reducing farm-level GHG emissions.”

The project is also part of a broader strategy that will help all parties reach additional long-term sustainability goals:

• Yum! and Pizza Hut will decrease GHG emissions by 46% by 2030, focusing on restaurants and supply chains and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
• DFA targets a 30% GHG emissions reduction across the supply chain by 2030. DFA is also part of an industry-wide collaboration through the Innovation Center for US Dairy to be greenhouse neutral or better by 2050.

“US dairy producers have set leading aspirations in sustainability, and we are excited to partner with them in support of practices that improve the sustainability of the dairy supply chain,” Jon Hixson, chief sustainability officer and vice president of Global Government Affairs at Yum! Brands, concludes.

Edited by Elizabeth Green

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