Clinton Foundation and PepsiCo Launch Strategic Partnership to Spur Social and Economic Development in Emerging Markets
Inaugural Project Focused on Improving Livelihood of Smallholder Cashew Farmers in Maharashtra, India
PepsiCo to Source Vitamin-Rich Cashew Fruit to Further Enhance Nutritional Quality of Juice Products in India
New York, NY- The Clinton Foundation and PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) announced a strategic partnership to spur social and economic development in emerging markets through a unique social enterprise model. The partnership's inaugural project was launched in Maharashtra, India with an agriculture initiative to source vitamin-rich cashew fruit from smallholder farmers, an arrangement that is expected to create an important new ingredient supply for PepsiCo's local juice business while simultaneously improving the livelihood of thousands of cashew growers in the region.
Through the Clinton Foundation's Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership model, founded by President Bill Clinton and philanthropist Frank Giustra, this initiative will apply modern agricultural techniques to improve cashew farming practices, boost yield and productivity, and increase income for local smallholder farmers. It will also scale up and strengthen India's cashew supply chain to build the future potential of a domestic and export market.
Most cashew farmers in this area of India farm on less than one hectare of land and live below the poverty line. The Clinton Foundation's Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership uses market-driven models to improve the livelihood of smallholder farmers by providing training, facilitating the purchase of their harvest, and handling their distribution and logistics. The approach has been designed for replication in value chains throughout the world and is currently catalyzing similar supply chain enterprises in Latin America and Haiti.
Cashew fruit - which typically goes unused by most cashew nut farmers - is high in nutritional value. It is rich in potassium and contains as much as five times the vitamin C as an orange and 50 times the vitamin C as an apple. PepsiCo plans to use cashew fruit juice as one of the ingredients in some of its blended fruit juice products in India.
"Committed partners like PepsiCo demonstrate the tremendous impact that social enterprises and the private sector can make when they work together to solve business problems that also advance social good," said President Clinton.
"This initiative embodies Performance with Purpose - PepsiCo's recognition that our success is inextricably linked to society's success," said Indra K. Nooyi, PepsiCo's Chairman and CEO. "Sustainable agriculture is critical to PepsiCo's supply chain and we have a long history of working with local farmers around the world in ways that strengthen our business and the communities in which we operate. This partnership is a great example of aligning business and societal priorities, and we see great potential in continued collaboration with the Clinton Foundation."
The program's first India cashew harvest is currently underway. The fruit will be sourced from more than 2,000 smallholder farmers in 2014, with plans to scale the opportunity to as many as 15,000 over the next five years. PepsiCo India plans to begin incorporating the fruit into some of its blended juice products starting in Spring 2015.
"The Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership's unique approach has the potential to generate meaningful impact in the developing world. We believe that by creating, scaling and replicating social enterprises in selected value chains we can help disadvantaged populations work themselves out of poverty," said Frank Giustra.
About the Clinton Foundation
The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation convenes businesses, governments, NGOs, and individuals to improve global health and wellness, increase opportunity for women and girls, reduce childhood obesity, create economic opportunity and growth, and help communities address the effects of climate change. Because of our work, 20,000 American schools are providing kids with healthy food choices in an effort to eradicate childhood obesity; 28,000 farmers in Malawi have improved their incomes by more than 500 percent; 248 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions are being reduced in cities worldwide; more than 5,000 people have been trained in marketable job skills in Colombia; 8.2 million people have access to lifesaving HIV/AIDS medications; $200 million in strategic investments have been made, impacting the health of 75 million people in the U.S.; and members of the Clinton Global Initiative have made nearly 2,800 Commitments to Action to improve more than 430 million lives around the world.
Learn more at http://www.clintonfoundation.org, on Facebook at Facebook.com/ClintonFoundation and on Twitter @ClintonFdn.
About the Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership
The Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership (the Enterprise Partnership) established by President Bill Clinton and Canadian philanthropist Frank Giustra, combines the best of non-profit and for-profit approaches to create new enterprises that capitalize market opportunities to generate social impact and financial returns by addressing existing market gaps in developing country supply and distribution chains. The Enterprise Partnership has been refining its approach for several years and believes there is great potential to enhance the economic and social benefits of marginalized communities by incorporating these individuals into one of three "market-driven" models - Distribution Enterprises, Supply Chain Enterprises, and Training Center Enterprises. Through these models, the Enterprise Partnership seeks to help people work themselves out of poverty. Learn more at http://www.CGEPartnership.com, on Facebook at Facebook.com/CGEPartnership and on Twitter @CGEPartnership
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $66 billion in net revenue in 2013, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.
At the heart of PepsiCo is Performance with Purpose - our goal to deliver top-tier financial performance while creating sustainable growth in shareholder value. In practice, Performance with Purpose means providing a wide range of foods and beverages from treats to healthy eats; finding innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment and reduce our operating costs; providing a safe and inclusive workplace for our employees globally; and respecting, supporting and investing in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.
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Contact:
Clinton Foundation Press Office, press@clintonfoundation.org, (212) 348-0360
Jeff Dahncke, PepsiCo, Jeff.Dahncke@PepsiCo.com, (914) 253-3941
CGEP, media@cgepartnership.com
