Yum! Brands Highlights Eco-Friendly Building Efforts to Cut Costs and Emissions

Yum! Brands, the parent company of KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and Habit Burger & Grill, emphasized its belief that “building green can help save green” in a recent sustainability-focused update. Since expanding to over 155 countries, the company has integrated energy-efficient and eco-conscious practices into its restaurant development strategy.

Since 2014, Yum! has followed sustainability guidelines modeled after LEED but tailored to quick-service operations. The brands have since evolved those practices further — KFC launched 11 Building Green Standards while Pizza Hut introduced its Green Hut Toolkit.

Key cost-saving and emission-reducing strategies include:

- Energy-efficient systems: LED lighting cut emissions by 5% at KFC globally, while enhanced HVAC systems enabled some Pizza Hut sites to slash energy use by 30%.
- Green furniture: KFC’s Green Line Furniture uses recovered materials and reduces emissions from shipping by 32%.
- Smart controls: Energy Management Systems in 815 restaurants across India reduced KFC electricity bills by 7%.
- Solar adoption: Select KFC stores, like one in California, operate drive-thrus entirely on solar energy, reducing energy costs by 20%.

Yum! has earned recognition from CDP and achieved LEED certifications across locations in Thailand, Vietnam, and India. As of 2023, it had already reduced franchisee restaurant GHG emissions per unit by 28% versus 2019 — more than halfway toward its 2030 goal of a 46% reduction.

Chief Sustainability Officer Jon Hixson said, “We’re more than halfway to this target, thanks to our green building efforts. By saving our franchisees money and conserving energy, it’s a win for the company and our planet.”