PepsiCo, Mars and ADM back regenerative agriculture project in Poland

Three global food and agribusiness companies—PepsiCo, Mars, and ADM—have joined forces to support regenerative farming practices in Poland, a move that highlights the industry’s growing focus on climate resilience and sustainable sourcing.

The partnership covers 5,454 hectares of farmland in western Poland and involves 24 farmers. Mars is backing regenerative wheat production across 3,359 hectares for its pet food brands such as Whiskas and Pedigree. PepsiCo is targeting 2,160 hectares of rapeseed cultivation to supply sustainably grown oil for snacks including Lay’s and Doritos. ADM, serving as implementation partner, is providing financial and technical resources to facilitate the transition.

Unlike crop-specific sustainability programs, the project takes a whole-farm approach. By promoting rotational agriculture—alternating cereals, legumes, and cover crops on the same land—it seeks to strengthen soil structure, improve water management, and reduce reliance on synthetic inputs. Farmers will also receive hands-on training from technical specialists and financial incentives tied to practices such as conservation tillage and cover cropping.

“Regenerative agriculture is a vital tool for enhancing soil health, strengthening farm resilience, and reducing agricultural emissions, which can ultimately benefit farmers and their livelihoods,” said Archana Jagannathan, Chief Sustainability Officer at PepsiCo for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. She noted that the project contributes to PepsiCo’s global target of implementing regenerative practices on 10 million acres by 2030.

Paul Gardner, Global Commercial VP at Mars, said the effort reflects “a pre-competitive collaboration” that aims to empower farmers to adopt climate-smart practices across shared crop rotations. ADM’s Chief Sustainability Officer Katherine Pickus added that the program could provide a blueprint for wider adoption of regenerative methods across Poland’s agricultural sector.

The initiative will also track progress using the Cool Farm Tool, a sustainability calculator that measures greenhouse gas emissions. Organizers hope the data collected will inform future expansions into other European markets.

Poland is seen as a critical test case: its farmers are at varying stages of adopting sustainable methods, and insights gained from this program could accelerate the transition across the region.