HVO to power all Walkers’ factory deliveries

PepsiCo has announced it has scaled-up the use of hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) with the transportation of 240,000 tonnes of potatoes each year now powered by the fuel type.

The news, which means across its supply chain the firm will save 2,650 tonnes in GHG emissions annually, will see potatoes transported to PepsiCo’s Leicester site from British farm powered by used cooking oil, in partnership with AB Texel UK.

The move follows PepsiCo’s introduction of the alternative fuel in 2022, for more than one and a half million kilometres of journeys moving product between the Quaker Oats mill in Cupar and its Leicester distribution centre. Every kilometre powered by HVO generates 80% less GHG emissions when compared with conventional diesel.

PepsiCo is continuing to scale sustainable HVO fuel across the business, with plans to expand its use to the company’s transport operations in Scotland later this year. This future expansion is expected to reduce GHG emissions by another 5,000 tonnes annually. By the end of 2023, PepsiCo expects to be using HVO to power around 9 million kilometres of journeys across the UK.

The initiative forms part of PepsiCo Positive, the company’s transformation programme which includes a goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2040.

Simon Devaney, Sustainability Director, PepsiCo UK & Ireland said: “We’re always looking for innovative ways to tackle our carbon footprint and the move to HVO for all our potato deliveries to Leicester, the home of Walkers, is a significant step. HVO fuel plays an important role in helping us to accelerate the decarbonisation of our transport activities.”

Lewis Chisholm, Director AB Texel UK added: “We acknowledge that we as AB Texel Group, must act now to make a difference for the future and want to contribute to the sustainable transition of the transport sector. We strive for long term partnerships with forward thinking businesses like PepsiCo to jointly realise our sustainability ambitions and add value. Our ambition is to limit our effect on global warming by reducing our own CO2emissions to 0% by 2050. The use of renewable fuels, in which we are taking an important step together with PepsiCo, contributes to the realisation of this ambitious goal.”

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