Mars shares ambition to accelerate regenerative agriculture with His...

As part of the tour, His Majesty met Ikdeep Singh, Global President of Mars Pet Nutrition, who represented Mars and shared details on the company’s vision and efforts to accelerate the adoption of regenerative practices, acknowledging the crucial role of strategic partnerships in finding innovative solutions and supporting adoption at scale.

Speaking after the meeting took place, Ikdeep said: “We have long admired His Majesty King Charles III position to champion action for a sustainable future and welcomed the opportunity to discuss Mars, Incorporated’s sustainability goals with him during the visit.

“Soil plays an essential role in climate resilience, yet experts estimate that over 90% of the earth’s topsoil will be significantly degraded by 2050¹, impacting food security and ecosystem health. Farmers are at the heart of building a resilient and sustainable food system, and collaboration with partners like the Soil Association – who we were delighted to have join us on the visit - is key to supporting them and driving meaningful progress.

Our involvement in Somerset House’s latest exhibition aims to spotlight the importance of protecting this vital resource and advancing innovative, creative solutions to one of the most pressing challenges of our time. We were thrilled it allowed us the opportunity to share our vision and progress with His Majesty.”

Mars, Incorporated recognises that nearly 60% of its value chain greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint comes from agricultural ingredients. That’s why the company is investing in scaling up new climate smart and regenerative agriculture. From the farms where food is grown for people and pets to the veterinary clinics where pets are cared for, Mars, Incorporated is investing over $1 billion over the next three years with an aim to halve its GHG footprint by 2030 and become net zero by 2050.

In connection with the exhibition, James Wellbeloved, part of the Mars family of brands, unveiled a 15-foot giant mucky pup sculpture named "Ellie" in central London earlier this month to raise awareness about the connection between healthy soil and pet nutrition. This exciting consumer facing activation is backed by the Beloved Soil Initiative, a pilot programme we're undertaking in collaboration with Agrii and Soil Association Exchange, focusing on improving soil health through sustainable farming practices.

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This sponsorship follows Mars Incorporated’s 2024 announcement of a record 8% reduction in GHG emissions across its full value chain (scopes 1, 2, and 3) as part of its latest Sustainable in a Generation Report, doubling its total GHG reduction to 16% since setting its baseline in 2015. This progress occurred while the business grew over 60% to more than $50 billion in annual sales²

* Details on Mars Inc. regenerative agriculture initiatives are as follows:

Europe: Mars x Cargill, ADM, Biospheres, Horta, Agreena, and Soil Capital.
Mars is partnering with Cargill, ADM, Biospheres, Horta, Agreena, and Soil Capital to transition thousands of hectares of farmland in Poland, Hungary, and the UK to more sustainable practices. Farmers will receive financial support and guidance to implement techniques such as crop rotation, minimal tillage, and cover cropping. These methods aim to improve soil health, reduce erosion, boost biodiversity, and sequester carbon. Mars is committed to addressing barriers to adoption while generating both environmental and economic benefits.

Germany: Mars x FrieslandCampina
A leading collaboration with dairy cooperative FrieslandCampina, including Mars’ pilot “net zero” dairy farms with the DMK Group, to commit $47M over 3 years. The initiative focuses on making dairy farming sustainable and economically viable, with plans to refine and scale new practices and technologies.

Australia: Cool Soil Initiative
In Australia, Mars is working with industry peers and Charles Sturt University on the Cool Soil initiative – a farmer-focused, scalable framework for emission reporting through the supply chain. This initiative works to enable a scientifically credible framework for the Australian food industry to support farmers to deliver healthy, sustainable products into the future. After two years of research by the Cool Soil Initiative, the Cool Farm Alliance developed a regional version of the Cool Farm Tool for Cool Soils specifically for Australian growing conditions.

Thailand: Sustainable Aromatic Rice Initiative
Launched in 2018, the Sustainable Aromatic Rice Initiative (SARI) is a collaboration between Mars, the German development agency GIZ, and other partners, to promote sustainable rice production aligned to the Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP) standard in Thailand. The initiative has trained 1,450 farmers, 70% of whom are women, across two provinces in Thailand. Concluding last year, rice farmers across both provinces have benefitted from increased rice production, and reduced water usage as a result.

Other global partnerships include collaborations in North America to support regenerative practices; launch of the Next Generation Soil programme in Mexico and Brazil aimed at reducing the social and environmental impacts of Mars Pet Nutrition’s grain supply.

1. https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/07/1123462
2. https://www.mars.com/sustainability-plan/sustainability-reports