Yum! Brands Advances Sustainability and Social Responsibility

Strategic Insights -

Yum! Brands, the parent company of KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut, has released its annual Global Citizenship & Sustainability Report, highlighting the company's significant investments in socially responsible growth, risk management, and stewardship of people, food, and the planet. The report showcases the company's commitment to addressing climate change, sustainable packaging, and creating equity in the communities it serves.

Key Takeaways:

  • Awarded over $50 million in funding to almost 30 social impact programs across nine countries through its global Unlocking Opportunity Initiative, a five-year $100 million commitment to tackle inequality through equity and inclusion, education, and entrepreneurship.
  • Launched the Yum! Franchise Accelerator, a one-of-a-kind MBA elective opportunity supporting underrepresented people of color and women interested in the franchise restaurant industry, as part of the Yum! Franchise Center for Excellence.
  • Conducted over 578,400 restaurant food safety audits since 2016 and continued to introduce plant-based offerings through partnerships with Beyond Meat.
  • Pledged to transition to 100 percent cage-free eggs across at least 25,000 restaurants by 2026, including the U.S., Western Europe, and other markets, across all brands for all menu items and ingredients.
  • Announced science-based targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions nearly 50 percent by 2030 and set an ambition to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
  • Entered a two-year partnership between KFC U.K. & Ireland and the University of Liverpool's Zero Carbon Research Institute (ZCRI) to identify ways to become a net-zero business by 2040.

Statistics:

  • Awarded over $50 million in funding to social impact programs across nine countries.
  • Conducted over 578,400 restaurant food safety audits since 2016.
  • Launched over 30 social impact programs to tackle inequality through equity and inclusion, education, and entrepreneurship.
  • Approximately 15 percent of Taco Bell's raw beef supply is procured from reduced antibiotic sources.
  • Announced science-based targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions nearly 50 percent by 2030.
  • Pledged to transition to 100 percent cage-free eggs across at least 25,000 restaurants by 2026.

Sources:

  • Yum! Brands Global Citizenship & Sustainability Report
  • [www.yum.com/citizenship]
  • Paradigm for Parity (16 December 2021)