Walkers Crisps owners PepsiCo has announced a £58m investment in its Walkers Leicester factory and bring production of some brands back from the EU to the UK.

The investment, the largest for the plant, will see replacement of existing machinery with more sustainable equipment, and the relocation of production of Wotsits and Monster Munch from the EU will reduce transport-related emissions by an estimated 915 tonnes a year.

Additionally, changing from gas fired ovens to electric ones that will be supplied with 100 per cent renewable electricity, helping cut around 1,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually.

These efforts will drive progress towards the company’s commitment to target an absolute reduction across its value chain by more than 40 per cent by 2030, reaching net-zero emissions by 2040.

New compact packaging equipment will also be installed to reduce the amount of virgin plastic used in multipack outer packaging by 56 tonnes a year, moving forward on the goal of eliminating virgin fossil-based plastic from crisp and snack bags across Europe by 2030.

This follows sustainable food packaging innovations announced last year, including new cardboard designs replacing outer plastic packaging on millions of Walkers 20-bag multipacks, and the use of new nanotechnology to create a stronger stretch film on our pallets that uses less virgin plastic.

The announcement follows a £24m investment in our Lincoln factory announced in 2021, as well as further multimillion-pound investments in our Southern Region Distribution Centre in Leicester and the Skelmersdale and Coventry Walkers sites

Share Story: