PepsiCo, a global leader in the food and beverage industry, is on the verge of completing a €127 million investment in its Little Island production facility in County Cork. This investment is set to open up additional manufacturing capacity and further enhance the company’s R&D campus. With over 1,250 team members currently working in Ireland, PepsiCo’s Cork-based workforce has seen a 20% increase in the last two years.
The Little Island campus houses 642 of PepsiCo’s Irish associate population, inclusive of employees in Manufacturing and R&D locations. The company’s investment has provided employment to over 700 professionals across its contracting and vendor partners during design and construction. Furthermore, the investment accommodates the ever-growing headcount at the Little Island campus. With the site currently advertising over 40 open roles in Cork, it continues to grow and expand, with a plethora of growth capabilities presented in the next few years.
Capitalizing on state-of-the-art manufacturing technology, PepsiCo’s Little Island operation supports its wide portfolio of global brands, including Pepsi Max, Gatorade, 7Up, Mountain Dew, and Doritos. The new facility expedites PepsiCo’s Little Island manufacturing capacity for its range of beverage ingredients and helps increase demand for their present products. Additionally, it plays a pivotal role in bringing PepsiCo’s innovation pipeline to its global consumer base.
PepsiCo’s R&D campus in Little Island is a regional and global leader in various areas, including beverage development, product research, testing and commercialization, quality assurance, regulatory management, and most recently, spearheading significant and transformational digital initiatives for PepsiCo with the establishment of a global R&D Digital Engineering team.
Simon Coveney TD, Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment, acknowledges the significance of PepsiCo’s latest investment in Ireland, saying, “This latest significant investment reinforces the company’s recognition of Ireland as a great place to do business.” Brian Colgan, Site Lead at PepsiCo Little Island, adds that “This very significant expansion will enable us to increase our manufacturing capacity and ensure that we can continue to meet the global demand for our existing and future products.”
Breda Kennedy, R&D Senior Director at PepsiCo expresses that “This latest investment in our R&D campus delivers state-of-the-art laboratories for several quality and research teams and a new contemporary digital solutions suite.” Investment in the business has driven the growth of the R&D team from just 10 people in 2007 to more than 130 today. Continual investment in the team will further strengthen PepsiCo’s ability to attract the best talent across digital, engineering, analytics, food science, sensory, and microbiology.
Mary Buckley, Executive Director at IDA Ireland, welcomes this continuing investment in PepsiCo, saying, “This investment by PepsiCo is very welcome and demonstrates the company’s ongoing commitment to Ireland, as it continues to grow its Irish operations nearly 50 years since it first established a footprint in Cork.” With transition words and active voice, utilize paragraphs and any markdown available to break up the content for optimal readability.
