PLANO, TEXAS – A new partnership between Yum! Brands, Pizza Hut and Dairy Farmers of America aims to help farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions by providing them with technology.

In turn, by the end of the three-year project, Pizza Hut plans to source 50% of the dairy used to make its cheese from DFA farms enrolled in the program.

Pizza Hut is teaming with DFA and dairy suppliers to identify dairy farms that want to be part of its Farmers Assuring Responsible Management and Environmental Stewardship project. Over the course of three years, farms that are involved will have their annual GHG and energy footprints evaluated.

Participating dairy farms will be provided with SCiO cups and be able to adopt other practices and technologies that will make them more sustainable. An SCiO cup is a lab-grade dry matter analyzer that farmers can use to examine cow feed, enabling them to identify ways they can improve milk production efficiency, as well as generate less waste and reduce GHG emissions. Farms will be able to apply for funds to put more sustainability projects in place, as well.

“Pizza Hut has a long history of implementing industry-leading innovation,” said Penny Shaheen, head of food innovation and technology at Pizza Hut. “With this sustainability initiative, we’re able to utilize technology along with our dairy partners in a way that helps the environment while still delivering the iconic taste that pizza lovers have come to expect from our offerings.”

Pizza Hut and its parent company, Yum! Brands, aim to reduce GHG emissions in the supply chain by partnering with DFA and dairy suppliers with the program. Its part of a long-term sustainability plan, with goals to reduce GHG emissions by 46% by 2030. Down the road, they have a goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.

DFA’s goals include a 30% reduction in GHG emissions across its supply chain by 2030, as well as a dairy industry plan through the Innovation Center for US Dairy to be greenhouse neutral or better by 2050.

“In 2020, Dairy Farmers of America became the first US dairy cooperative to set a science-based target to reduce both direct and value chain greenhouse gas emissions, and this partnership with Pizza Hut and Dairy Farmers of America is an important piece in those continued efforts,” said Hansel New, director of sustainability programs at DFA. “We appreciate partners supporting our dairy farm families by investing in meaningful, innovative technologies and practices that advance environmental stewardship, while reducing farm-level greenhouse gas emissions.”

Yum! Brands in 2019 joined the Innovation Center’s Dairy Sustainability Alliance, a group DFA joined in 2010. The alliance is comprised of organizations that work together to contribute to dairy’s social responsibility and sustainability goals.

“We are proud to work with Dairy Farmers of America in this innovative project,” said Jon Hixson, chief sustainability officer and vice president of global government affairs at Yum! Brands. “US dairy producers have set leading aspirations in sustainability, and we are excited to partner with them in support of practices that improve the sustainability of the dairy supply chain.”