Davos 2026: PepsiCo CSO on Sustainable Farming & Agriculture

As the world turns its attention from COP30 in Brazil to the World Economic Forum in Davos, the urgency to transform the global food system has never been clearer.

Amid increasing climate pressures, soil degradation and water scarcity, the resilience of agriculture – and the livelihoods it supports – hangs in the balance.

For PepsiCo’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Jim Andrew, the path forward lies in putting farmers at the centre of the conversation.

In this interview, Jim reflects on his key takeaways from COP30, PepsiCo’s “Farmers First” initiative at Davos, and the collaborative actions needed across business, government and finance to strengthen food system resilience, rebuild trust and scale regenerative agriculture worldwide.

1. Coming out of COP30 in Brazil and looking ahead to Davos, what were your biggest takeaways for the food and beverage sector? 

The global food system and the future of agriculture is increasingly fragile and at risk, and it requires collective action to transform it in the face of increasing climate pressures, soil degradation, water scarcity and extreme weather events.

Transforming and strengthening the global food system is essential for long-term business resilience in the food and beverage sector.  Farmers and farming communities are proving how regenerative agriculture practices can positively impact soil health, emissions, biodiversity, watersheds and crops, strengthening the resilience of their farms, their communities and their ability to continue to grow the crops and food the world depends on. 

When farmers thrive, we all benefit. The World Economic Forum gathering at Davos is an opportunity to continue this conversation around how to advance practical, collaborative solutions that strengthen food system resilience and keep farmers at the centre. 

2. What brings PepsiCo to Davos this year and what are you personally looking forward to? What conversations do you hope to help shape?

WEF is an opportunity to bring together business, government, finance and civil society around practical solutions, especially in a time when the food system is under real pressure.

Personally, what I’m most looking forward to is welcoming farmers into the dialogue through our "Farmers First” breakfast and the panel conversation we’ll host as part of it. Creating space for farmers to speak directly with executives across industry about what’s working, what’s challenging and what support is actually needed to strengthen farm resilience and our global food system is one of the most important things we can do right now.

More broadly, the conversations I hope to help shape are about how we turn shared ambition into execution, faster and at scale.

Meaningful progress can’t be achieved by individual companies acting in isolation – systemic change requires cooperation across sectors and government leadership and private co-investment must go hand-in-hand. I’m especially focused on discussions that move beyond pilots and toward scale: aligning around outcomes, building trust through practical, low-burden measurement and deploying innovation responsibly so it delivers real value on farms and across supply chains.

3. You’re convening a farmer-centric breakfast at Davos. Why start with farmers, and what do you want leaders to better understand about what’s needed right now?

We’re starting with farmers because the people who grow food are central to any change.

Farmers and farming communities are essential partners in building resilience and sustainability, and they’re on the frontlines of climate change. For many, the farm is their family’s livelihood and a legacy they expect to pass on, and adopting new regenerative practices can be seen as a risk that many don’t want to take on without clear support. 

That’s why our Davos signature event, “Farmers First: Scaling a More Resilient Food System” is designed to put farmers at the heart of the conversation about transforming the global food system. The breakfast is built to listen directly to farmers, understand their challenges and build on what’s working by attracting new partners and engaging more stakeholders in solutions with greater  impact.

Farmers from South America, North America and Europe who are all connected to our supply chain will be in attendance to share their perspectives and lead, breakout discussions because leaders need to hear, directly and concretely, what’s needed now: investment, trusted resources, practical tools, technical assistance tailored to local conditions and enabling policies that help de-risk transition and scale what works.

4. When you think about the next generation of sustainability leaders, including farmers and frontline communities, what gives you optimism, and what do you want WEF- Davos 2026 attendees to do differently when they go home?

I’m optimistic because I see farmers and farming communities demonstrating what’s possible and showing how regenerative agriculture can strengthen resilience, support local economies and help transform the food system.

I also see growing momentum to recognize farmers as core partners in innovation and sustainability, including initiatives like PepsiCo’s first-ever Global Farmer Awards held last fall, honouring farmers and advisors across countries for leadership in sustainability, innovation, and resilience. 

I hope Davos attendees will see this momentum and understand what we must do together to protect and strengthen the future of farming.  Ultimately, it comes down to having more participation from business, financial institutions, governments and NGOs, more aligned policy, more strategic investment and more support for farmers and farming communities.  

5. This year’s Davos theme, “A Spirit of Dialogue”, is all about rebuilding trust. Where do you think trust is most fragile in the food system today and what does it take to rebuild it at speed?

Trust is most fragile when people feel decisions are being made ABOUT them, rather than WITH them.

Farmers, communities and consumers want confidence that change is practical, fair and effective – and that it strengthens resilience rather than shifting risk onto those on the frontlines. That’s why putting farmers first is foundational: the people who grow food are central to any change. 

Rebuilding trust at speed requires two things: honest dialogue and credible outcomes. Honest dialogue means listening directly to farmers, acknowledging what works and what doesn’t, and strengthening collaboration for actionable impact. It also means recognising that meaningful progress cannot be achieved by individual companies acting in isolation; systemic change requires action from everyone across the ecosystem.

Credible outcomes require measurement systems that are practical, low-burden, and designed to work for farmers. PepsiCo works closely with hyper-local farmer-facing organisations who already have the trust of farmers and understand their needs, to help implement regenerative agriculture programs. As innovation accelerates, trust must be built into the transformation through co-investment, collaboration and approaches that work in the real world for farmers and communities. 

All sustainability, net zero, Scope 3 and sustainable supply chain leaders should attend:

• Sustainability LIVE: The Net Zero Summit - QEII Centre, London, March 4-5
• Sustainability LIVE: The US Summit - Navy Pier, Chicago, April 21-22

Co-located with Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE, these events brings together CSOs, ESG leaders and senior decision-makers at a moment when sustainability, supply chains and commercial performance are increasingly interconnected.

Tickets can be booked online today for The Net Zero Summit and The US Summit. Group discounts available.

6. On ‘Cooperation in a contested world’: how can companies collaborate across sectors and borders on food security and climate resilience, even amid geopolitical uncertainty?

Cooperation starts with a shared recognition: This is a crucial time for the future of agriculture, and the global food system is increasingly fragile and at risk – Collective action is needed to transform it  in the face of increasing climate pressures, soil degradation, water scarcity and extreme weather events. 

Everyone has a part to play including governments, NGOs, financial institutions and businesses. In practice, collaboration works best when it’s designed to de-risk adoption and deliver support where it matters most: on farms and in sourcing regions. Public-private partnerships can blend government funds and private capital to help ensure resources and technical assistance reach farmers in ways tailored to local conditions – supporting productivity, resilience and verified outcomes. 

Also, enabling policy matters: we encourage governments to design and scale partnership models that allow private industry to co-invest, stacking public finance corporate and philanthropic, to accelerate the transition toward regenerative, low-emission, resilient food systems. In a contested world, cooperation is about building durable mechanisms focused on shared outcomes like food security and resilience. 

7. On ‘Building prosperity within planetary boundaries’: which outcomes matter most now – climate, water, nature, waste – and how do you balance progress across all of them without trade-offs getting lost?

These outcomes are deeply connected in food systems, and balancing them starts by focusing on actions that strengthen resilience for farmers and communities while protecting biodiversity and the ecosystems agriculture depends on. 

Regenerative agriculture can improve soil health, water retention and yield stability under variable climate conditions, and taking action to improve biodiversity, such as protecting pollinators and restoring habitat corridors, underpins agricultural resilience. 

Water is a human right and indispensable to every community, ecosystem and economy, not to mention our business. That’s why we have a vision to become net water positive by 2030 and are working to replenish at least as much as the water we use at our manufacturing facilities in high water-risk areas by then, while improving water-use efficiency in both agriculture and manufacturing and investing in watershed health and safe water access.

In 2024, our global projects replenished approximately 24 billion litres of water, and we replenished ~75% of the water used in company-owned manufacturing facilities in high-risk watersheds. 

Packaging  plays an essential role in safely delivering food and drinks, and long-term transformation to help build a more circular economy for packaging requires further alignment, collaboration and action from governments, business and civil society to address a fragmented policy landscape and lagging collection and recycling infrastructure. 

We keep trade-offs from getting lost by anchoring decisions in science-based targets, credible measurement and transparent reporting while recognizing systemic barriers and the need for collaboration. 

8. On ‘Investing in people’ (another Davos 2026 theme): what investments are most needed to support farmer livelihoods and a resilient workforce (skills, finance, digital tools, or something else)?

It’s not one investment; it’s an integrated set that meets farmers and frontline communities where they are.

Millions of farmers, especially smallholder farmers, are on the frontlines of climate change. With the right policies, funding and partnerships, they can help turn agriculture into a climate solution at scale and help make the larger food system more resilient. 

Finance is often the unlock. We need models that reduce transition risk with upfront support and then reward verified outcomes so farmers aren’t asked to carry the full burden of change.

A recent example is PepsiCo’s direct farmer incentive pilot in Brazil’s Cerrado, launched with partners Griffith Foods and Milhão. It uses a hybrid “payment for practice” approach to help cover upfront transition costs, plus “payment for outcomes” to reward performance tied to measurable results (including reductions in agrochemical use).

We need more “purpose built” financial products that recognize the risk-reduction benefits of improved resilience and can better connect the sources of capital (both philanthropic/concessionary and market-based) with the opportunities that exist.