Key Impact Points:
- Mars unveiled a $250M Mars Sustainability Investment Fund to back innovation in agriculture, packaging, and ingredient sourcing.
- Despite 69% sales growth since 2015, Mars has cut its carbon footprint by 16.4%, including a 1.9% absolute reduction in 2024.
- Over 60 regenerative agriculture projects now span 29 countries, bolstering climate resilience and farmer livelihoods.
Mars Doubles Down on Sustainability with $250M Innovation Fund
Mars, Incorporated has launched the Mars Sustainability Investment Fund (MSIF), committing up to $250 million to accelerate innovation in climate and sustainability solutions. The fund will focus on advanced agriculture, low-emission ingredients, and next-generation packaging, targeting scalable solutions that reduce environmental impact across the company’s value chain.
Cutting Emissions While Growing Business
In its 2024 Sustainable in a Generation report, Mars reported a 1.9% absolute reduction in GHG emissions for the year, bringing total reductions to 16.4% since 2015. This comes even as the company’s annual net sales have grown 69% to $55 billion.
Poul Weihrauch, Mars CEO, said:
“I’m pleased to see our continued ability to decouple our business growth from our carbon footprint while simultaneously investing in innovation and getting behind start-ups that will be creating new solutions and advance breakthroughs to help companies address resilience challenges.”
Scaling Climate-Smart Agriculture
Mars now supports more than 60 agricultural projects in 29 countries, spanning 13 crops. These initiatives aim to regenerate soil health, reduce energy use in direct operations, and help farmers adapt to climate hazards like drought and flooding.
Key programs include:
- Livelihoods Fund for Family Farmers (L3F): 932 palm oil farmers in North Sumatra certified by RSPO; 8,000 hectares of forest protected.
- KIND Almond Acres Initiative: Doubled test acreage, achieving 17% water use efficiency gains.
- Moo’ving Dairy Forward Plan: $47M invested to lower dairy supply chain emissions.
- RESTORE Project: Supports sustainable cocoa while increasing tree cover and community incomes.
- SARI (Thailand): Reached 1,445 rice farmers—66% women—with yield gains of up to 43%, while cutting water use up to 56%.
Tying Emissions Cuts to Executive Pay
In 2024, Mars expanded sustainability accountability by linking long-term GHG reduction goals to the compensation of ~2,000 company leaders, up from 400 previously. This reinforces the company’s strategy of embedding sustainability into every level of operations.
Alastair Child, Mars Chief Sustainability Officer, said:
“We’re firmly committed not just to targets in a distant future but to delivering progress now. Societal impact goals have to be built into business decision making… Only large-scale change will deliver on our collective goals.”
What’s Next for MSIF
The new investment fund will deploy capital through direct investments and fund partnerships, with a mission to drive:
- Advanced Agriculture: Tools that lower emissions from farming inputs.
- Innovative Ingredients: Healthier, lower-emission alternatives for Mars products.
- Circular Packaging: Compostable or recyclable solutions to replace flexible plastics.
This initiative builds on Mars’ Sustainable in a Generation Plan and aims to deliver business growth while building long-term resilience across its global supply chain.
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