Margaret Henry, Director of Sustainable Agriculture for PepsiCo, was honored by the Illinois Corn Growers Association (ICGA) at their annual meeting on November 23rd for her commitment to farmers and their farming practices as PepsiCo considered their own sustainability goals and how to meet them.

PepsiCo has been a proud partner with IL Corn’s Precision Conservation Management (PCM) program for the past four years. The company enjoys PCM as a trusted farmer partner, as they work to help keep Illinois farmers resilient into the future.

“PepsiCo is going above and beyond the vast majority of ‘sustainability’ commitments by not only working on our own operations, but also working hand in hand with the farmers who supply us to make progress together on issues that matter to communities worldwide,” said Henry.

She continued, “At PepsiCo, we focus on working with our farmers to find ways that “sustainability” benefits everyone who grows, makes and eats everything from Doritos to Naked Juice, Quaker Oats to Lays Potato Chips, and Pepsi to Tropicana.”

 PepsiCo is committed to working in partnership with the farmers in their supply chains and views PCM as a critical partner in that journey.

“It is extremely valuable to have the partnership of such an influential company as farmers work through PCM to meet the world’s conservation and sustainability goals,” said Randy DeSutter, family farmer and President of ICGA. “Without partnerships like PepsiCo, and without the staff leadership of folks like Ms. Henry who truly understand farming and farming practices, Illinois farmers would not be making the significant changes on their farms that will impact the way food is grown for the future.”

Henry was born on a dairy farm in Kentucky. She has spent her life and career working to improve social, economic, and environmental outcomes for rural communities around the world. She has a BA and BS from Brown University, training from Massachusetts Institute for Technology in System Dynamics, and a Master’s in Public Policy from Princeton University focused on Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy.

As the Director of Sustainable Agriculture at PepsiCo, she works on their strategy to partner and expand climate resilient and regenerative farming practices around the world. She believes that the most enduring change comes about when aligning diverse partners with different expertise and driving outcomes through finding shared value from the farmer to the environment to the consumer.