SHANGHAI, Nov. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- PepsiCo, Inc. (NYSE: PEP) today announced the opening of a new food and beverage innovation center in Shanghai, China. The state-of-the-art facility, which is PepsiCo's largest research and development center outside of North America, will serve as a hub of new product, packaging and equipment innovation for PepsiCo's businesses throughout Asia.
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The new facility is equipped with an advanced culinary center and test kitchens focused on developing and tailoring PepsiCo food and beverage brands for distinct, locally relevant taste preferences throughout the region. In addition, the facility will house a pilot manufacturing plant that will allow researchers to quickly test new product ideas and support efforts to significantly accelerate the pace of PepsiCo's innovation in China and other growing Asian markets.
It is one of PepsiCo's most integrated food and beverage R&D centers anywhere in the world, a combination that is designed to unlock new opportunities for breakthrough innovation across the company's diverse portfolio of complementary brands and enable greater speed and efficiency throughout the entire R&D process. The new Shanghai facility will also work collaboratively with other PepsiCo R&D locations around the world to share insights and best practices.
"Innovation has always fueled PepsiCo's growth engine and enabled us to build a portfolio of great-tasting, convenient food and beverage brands that are loved by consumers around the globe," said Saad Abdul-Latif, CEO, PepsiCo Asia, Middle East & Africa. "The Shanghai facility is a game-changer for our business that we expect will fast forward our innovation throughout the entire region."
"PepsiCo continues to build global research and development capabilities that are differentiating our brands in the marketplace and driving attractive new growth opportunities," said Mehmood Khan, executive vice president and chief scientific officer, PepsiCo. "This center will play an important role in our global R&D network by bringing cutting edge technology and innovation to our businesses in China and throughout Asia Pacific and partnering with other PepsiCo locations to achieve new breakthroughs in other parts of the world."
The new R&D center was built in line with the criteria established by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), the world's leading green building standard, and uses advanced technologies and processes to conserve natural resources and reduce operating costs.
The grand opening was attended today by Mr. Abdul-Latif, Dr. Khan, and other PepsiCo leaders. Mr. Huang Feng, Deputy Director General, Ministry of Commerce; Mr. Dai Hua,Vice Governor of Minhang District, Shanghai and other local officials and industry association senior representatives also attended.
Mr. Dai said: "PepsiCo is one of the world's most successful food and beverage companies, and we're proud that they continue to grow and invest in China. Shanghai is a vibrant business center with a wealth of human capital, informational technology, and commerce that continues to attract great companies like PepsiCo. Multinational companies are playing an important role in Shanghai's continued development, and we look forward to having PepsiCo as part of the fabric of Shanghai for many years to come."
Tailoring Global Brands for Local Tastes
PepsiCo has a strong portfolio of global food and beverage brands that includes 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in annual retail sales. A key focus of the PepsiCo Asian R&D center will be tailoring these brands for regional consumer taste preferences and developing locally relevant new products. PepsiCo has developed and launched a number of locally relevant new products in Asian markets in recent years, including:
Driving Growth in Emerging Markets
China and the Asia Pacific region are key components of PepsiCo's overall plan to drive growth in emerging and developing markets globally. PepsiCo nearly tripled its business in emerging and developing markets from $8 billion in annual net revenue in 2006 to $22 billion in 2011.
The opening of the new R&D center and pilot manufacturing plant in Shanghai is the latest in a series of steps PepsiCo has taken to strengthen its business across Asia. During 2012, PepsiCo has:
About PepsiCo
PepsiCo is a global food and beverage leader with net revenues of more than $65 billion and a product portfolio that includes 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in annual retail sales. Our main businesses – Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay and Pepsi-Cola – make hundreds of enjoyable foods and beverages that are loved throughout the world. PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment by conserving energy and water and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.
Cautionary Statement
Statements in this communication that are "forward-looking statements" are based on currently available information, operating plans and projections about future events and trends. Terminology such as "believe," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "project," "anticipate," "will" or similar statements or variations of such terms are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such terms. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted in such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: changes in demand for PepsiCo's products, as a result of changes in consumer preferences and tastes or otherwise; PepsiCo's ability to compete effectively; unfavorable economic conditions in the countries in which PepsiCo operates; damage to PepsiCo's reputation; PepsiCo's ability to grow its business in developing and emerging markets or unstable political conditions, civil unrest or other developments and risks in the countries where PepsiCo operates; trade consolidation or the loss of any key customer; changes in the legal and regulatory environment; PepsiCo's ability to build and sustain proper information technology infrastructure, successfully implement its ongoing business transformation initiative or outsource certain functions effectively; fluctuations in foreign exchange rates; increased costs, disruption of supply or shortages of raw materials and other supplies; disruption of PepsiCo's supply chain; climate change, or legal, regulatory or market measures to address climate change; PepsiCo's ability to hire or retain key employees or a highly skilled and diverse workforce; failure to successfully renew collective bargaining agreements or strikes or work stoppages; failure to successfully complete or integrate acquisitions and joint ventures into PepsiCo's existing operations; failure to successfully implement PepsiCo's global operating model; failure to realize anticipated benefits from our productivity plan; any downgrade of our credit ratings; and any infringement of or challenge to PepsiCo's intellectual property rights.
For additional information on these and other factors that could cause PepsiCo's actual results to materially differ from those set forth herein, please see PepsiCo's filings with the SEC, including its most recent annual report on Form 10-K and subsequent reports on Forms 10-Q and 8-K. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. PepsiCo undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
SOURCE PepsiCo, Inc.