PepsiCo counts 4.7 million acres under farming practices it backs, and puts $2 million into its largest farm-pilot slate yet

September 2026 — PepsiCo says 4.7 million acres were farmed under regenerative, restorative and protective practices in its 2025 ESG Summary. This year it's putting more than $2 million into more than 30 farm projects through its accelerator. Here's what happened, what it cost, and what went wrong.

Cost and outcome (as of Sept. 11, 2026)

Outcome (PepsiCo claim): 4.7 million acres farmed in regenerative, restorative and protective practices. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)
Cost: More than $2 million in catalytic funding in 2026 for the PAO Accelerator. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)
Pilot: Multi-gate irrigation on about 1,400 acres of white maize in Mexico's Bajío region. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)
Not disclosed: Yield, water savings or emissions results for the pilots.

What PepsiCo reported

PepsiCo's story on its 2025 ESG Summary lists 4.7 million acres farmed in regenerative, restorative and protective practices. It says the company sources ingredients from more than 60 countries and delivered 79 billion portions of diverse ingredients. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)

The summary reports progress across three pep+ pillars: Positive Agriculture, Positive Value Chain and Positive Choices. PepsiCo also notes a 24% figure for progress toward its Scope 1 and 2 goal, against a 2022 market baseline, and a 6% reduction in absolute virgin plastic tonnage in primary packaging between 2024 and 2025 in key markets. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)

PepsiCo says its target progress follows the Science Based Targets initiative's Corporate Net Zero Standard. It reports cuts against a baseline from its physical footprint, and reports separately on target progress that includes "system contributions." It says this approach may change as guidance evolves. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)

The accelerator

PepsiCo launched the Positive Agriculture Outcomes (PAO) Accelerator in 2021. It works with farmers, agronomic experts and regional teams and co-invests to test new technology and scale regenerative practices. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)

In 2026, the accelerator is backing its largest portfolio yet: more than 30 projects and scale-up initiatives across key sourcing regions, with more than $2 million in catalytic funding. PepsiCo says the aim is to find which approaches may be ready for broader adoption. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)

The Bajío pilot

In Mexico's Bajío region, a PAO pilot is testing multi-gate irrigation on about 1,400 acres of white maize. PepsiCo calls it a lower-cost alternative to traditional precision irrigation, in a region where declining water availability threatens long-term productivity. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)

"Before, we had to keep moving and repositioning pipes to carry water to the different furrows," said Juan Enrique Mejía, a farmer testing the system. "Now, with the outlets right where we need them, management is much more practical." (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)

"It's flexible and adapts well to the field," said Agustin Aguirre Vela, another farmer in the pilot. PepsiCo says the pilot brings the company, farmers, suppliers and technology partners together in real farming conditions to build evidence for a practical solution, which could scale across its corn supply chain "if successful." (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)

Supply-chain context

PepsiCo also works with ADM. ADM named PepsiCo as a downstream partner in 2025 (ADM, September 2025) and cited new initiatives with PepsiCo and Mars in 2026. (ADM, Sept. 15, 2026)

What went wrong

No pilot results. PepsiCo describes the Bajío pilot as "assessing" water, agronomic and economic benefits, and it gives no measured results yet. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)
Broad acreage category. The 4.7 million acres puts regenerative, restorative and protective practices together, so the regenerative share alone isn't given.
Small budget. More than $2 million spread across more than 30 projects is modest next to a 4.7 million-acre footprint. (PepsiCo, Sept. 11, 2026)
What we don't know yet: the per-project spend, who verifies the acreage, and the irrigation pilot's water savings.

Our follow-up question for PepsiCo

How much of the 4.7 million acres is regenerative, and what has the Bajío pilot measured?

Sources

PepsiCo, “What PepsiCo's PAO Accelerator reveals about the company's 2025 ESG progress,” Sept. 11, 2026. pepsico.com
ADM, “ADM's Fourth Annual Regenerative Agriculture Report Highlights Growing Resilience Across the Food System,” Sept. 15, 2026. investors.adm.com
ADM, “ADM Exceeds 5M Regenerative Agriculture Acreage Goal,” September 2025. adm.com

Disclosure: [not in copy] Editor placeholder