In the context of rigid constraints on water resources, ecological protection and high-quality development in the Yellow River Basin, how to support higher-quality output with less water and extend "use water well" to "use water well" is becoming a must-answer question for enterprises in their green transformation.
On November 11, 2026, PepsiCo released the phased results of China's sustainable water resources management in Xi'an. While continuing to improve water efficiency in agricultural irrigation and production, its own factories and franchised bottling plants located in high water risk areas have returned more than 1.1 billion liters of water to their basins in the past four years.
Behind this achievement, PepsiCo is based on the World Resources Institute (WRI) water risk dynamic assessment system, focusing water resources management on areas with high water risks, and combining it with local realities to promote multi-level practices from source reduction, process efficiency improvement to end feedback through the two major business value chains of food and beverages.
Let water efficiency management run through the value chain
Official data shows that my country's per capita water resources are only 35% of the world average. Nearly 70% of the country's urban agglomerations, more than 90% of its energy bases, and more than 60% of its main grain-producing areas are located in water-scarce areas.
Under resource constraints, all aspects of the food and beverage industry, from planting, processing to bottling, need to consider "how to support higher quality output with less water." This also means that water efficiency management cannot stay at a single point of water conservation, but must enter the value chain system and become part of the company's operational capabilities.
For the food business, potato cultivation is the source of the production chain and an important link in improving water resource utilization efficiency. Every square meter of water saved in the field will be amplified into a wider resource space along the industrial chain.
As Sheng Ruihan, general manager of PepsiCo Food China, said, "Agriculture is the starting point of the food business. We are using more scientific agricultural practices and more efficient production methods to achieve higher yields with less water."
Currently, more than 90% of PepsiCo’s own and cooperative farms in China have applied digital drip irrigation systems to their planting areas. The system supports farmers to monitor soil moisture conditions in real time, allowing water and fertilizer to be delivered to crop roots more accurately, enabling on-demand irrigation. The supporting small-flow drip irrigation and intelligent agricultural management technology make "less water, more grain" a replicable operation.
From precision irrigation at agricultural sources, to recycling in food factories, to improving water efficiency in beverage bottling, PepsiCo is integrating efficient use of water resources into different business scenarios and collaborating with partners through technology applications to promote water efficiency management in the food and beverage value chain.
Integrating water efficiency into the production system
On the factory side, PepsiCo China's own food factories have formed a management system covering water efficiency diagnosis, equipment intelligent control and cycle optimization, and implemented it into specific process links.
For example, fresh potatoes contain 80% water, and a large amount of water vapor is generated during the frying process. PepsiCo's Beijing food factory uses energy recovery devices to capture these vapors and then recycle them after treatment. This water, which would otherwise be lost to the air, is returned to the production process.
This practice embodies PepsiCo’s idea of improving production water efficiency: exploring water-saving space through technological improvements, and then promoting the continuous operation of relevant measures through systematic management, making water resource utilization efficiency an important part of production and operation management.
In terms of water resources management, PepsiCo Beijing Food Factory has also been recognized by international professional standards. Since 2024, the plant has continuously received platinum-level certification, the highest level of the International Sustainable Water Management Standard (AWS).
In the beverage business, water is both the production medium and the main raw material of products. The water efficiency of the bottling plant affects the resource cost of the unit product. PepsiCo works closely with its Chinese bottling partner Master Kong to continue to improve production water efficiency. According to reports, the average water efficiency of all six bottling plants located in high water risk areas has reached the industry-leading level.
Extend "use water well" to "use water well"
For factories located in areas with high water risks, improving production water efficiency is the basis of water resources management, and the health of the watershed in the area is related to long-term operations.
Yao Weiwei, president of PepsiCo International Beverage Franchise and Greater China Beverage, also mentioned, “Water resources management is not only about environmental protection, but also about the long-term resilience of business and communities.”
This means that an enterprise’s water resources management cannot stop within the factory. In addition to improving production water efficiency, how to carry out water feedback and support ecological restoration of watersheds based on the characteristics of the local water environment is also an important part of PepsiCo's water resources management practice.
The Qingshui River Wetland Restoration Project in Xi'an, located in the Yellow River Basin, is one example.
Qingshui River is a tributary of Chan River and belongs to the Yellow River Basin. The local water environment has been plagued by pollution, and the surface water quality was once worse than Category V. In 2024, PepsiCo will launch the Qingshui River Wetland Restoration Project in Gaozhai New Village, Chang'an District, Xi'an to improve the local water environment with nature-based solutions.
The project introduces river water into five local dry micro-wetlands and connects them into a wetland ecosystem. Relying on the natural terrain differences and water flow paths, the river water is purified by the wetlands and flows back to the river through processes such as sedimentation, plant filtration, and natural oxygenation. These five small wetlands thus become a "natural purifier".
Qingshui River wetland system operation simulation schematic diagram
In 2025, when the project enters its first full year of operation, the purified water volume will exceed 580 million liters, which is approximately equal to the water volume of 232 Olympic standard swimming pools. Annual monitoring data shows that the surface water quality at the wetland inlet used to be inferior to Category V, which is not suitable for contact. After wetland purification, the average water quality at the outlet reached Category III, which is suitable for fish and shrimp spawning and aquaculture.
According to project information, a water meter is installed at the entrance of the wetland to record the water inflow, and water quality sampling is carried out eight times a year to continuously monitor water quality changes before and after wetland treatment. In the future, the annual water purification volume of the project is expected to further increase to 1 billion liters.
The improvement of the water environment has also led to the restoration of wetland ecology. Today, the treated watershed has attracted more than 100 species of waterbirds, including the black stork, a national first-level protected wild animal, to return to spend the winter.
wetland birds
At the same time, local villagers participate in wetland patrols and daily maintenance through community co-management model to provide support for the continued operation of the project.
Villagers of Gaozhai New Village
Uncle Long, a village ranger in Gaozhai New Village, said, "In the past, everyone did not believe that this river could survive. Now that the water is clear and the birds have returned, everyone has changed from 'watching from the side' to 'following.' Some young people have returned to their hometowns and built fish ponds to raise fish in the lower reaches of the river."
village ranger
Using the "capillary" type of small wetland as an incision, the Qingshui River project provides an important reference for cost-controllable and community participation for the ecological restoration of the watershed.
According to reports, PepsiCo’s only Beijing food factory located in a high water risk area also carries out water feedback through wastewater treatment, rainwater collection and utilization and other measures. From 2022 to 2025, a total of more than 524 million liters of water will be returned to the nearby wetland park.
Hong Zonghua, Vice President of Group Affairs of PepsiCo Asia Pacific, said, "Sustainable development is the core strategy to support PepsiCo's long-term growth, build business resilience, and create social value. Based on the current situation, we are integrating the sustainable concept throughout the entire value chain from agricultural sources, production operations to watershed protection, and through collaborative actions with business partners, professional institutions, local communities, etc., we continue to promote the implementation of water resources management in the regions where we operate."
As relevant experience is promoted to more production scenarios and combined with watershed management in different regions, PepsiCo's accumulated water resources management capabilities in China are moving from single-point practice to systematic application, further releasing industrial and social value.
Xi'an Qingshuihe Wetland
Water efficiency doesn’t end at factory walls. When every drop of water is sent to the roots in the field, recycled in the factory, purified in the basin and then returned to the river, "use water well" and "use water well" form a closed loop, which has also become an important support for the long-term competitiveness of enterprises.
