BakeryandSnack Chat Podcast

PepsiCo’s ongoing fight against hunger: ‘We would love to work with other partners who want to come together with us’

24-Oct-2019 - Last updated on 19-Aug-2020 at 08:05 GMT

The PepsiCo Foundation’s signature nutrition operation Food for Good has worked with food banks and other hunger-fighting organizations to deliver more 100 million servings of nutritious food to children in need since its inception a decade ago.

Child hunger – particularly when kids are not in school – is a significant challenge in the US.

According to Matt Smith, director of Food For Good, there are more than 21 million American kids who depend on the free or the reduced price lunch program at school each day.

Food For Good has delivered more than 100 million servings of nutritious food across the 20 markets it serves in the States to date, and has the goal to provide 50 million servings per year by 2025.

Internationally, The PepsiCo Foundation is a partner of the Global FoodBanking Network and in 2018, helped deliver 85 million servings of fresh food to 175,000 people in communities in need in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, South Africa, Israel, Bulgaria, Australia, Argentina, Guatemala and Peru.

This month, the snacking giant is hosting its employee volunteerism event – PepsiCo Gives Back – with the goal to distribute 1.1 million nutritious meals to communities in need. Throughout October, nearly 3,000 employees in the US, Spain, India and South Africa are expected to help pack meals.

But it’s just more than just providing a meal. It’s about making a difference.

BakeryandSnacks chats to Matt Smith to find out more about the company’s philanthropic itinerary.