PepsiCo investing €127m at its Cork manufacturing facility

Food and drinks company PepsiCo is nearing completion on a €127 million investment at its Little Island manufacturing facility in Co Cork, which will see the opening of additional manufacturing capacity and further investment in its R&D campus.

PepsiCo currently employs more than 1,250 people in Ireland. Over the last two years, its Cork-based workforce has increased by more than 20 per cent, with 642 staff based at the Little Island campus.

The group said its €127 million investment for the campus has provided employment to more than 700 professionals across PepsiCo’s contracting and vendor partners during design and construction. There are currently more than 40 open roles in Cork.

PepsiCo’s portfolio of global brands includes Pepsi Max, Gatorade, 7Up, Mountain Dew and Doritos.

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The new facility will expand PepsiCo’s Little Island manufacturing capacity across its range of beverage ingredients, support increased demand for existing PepsiCo products and play a key role in bringing PepsiCo’s innovation pipeline to its global customer base.

Brian Colgan, site lead at the facility, said: “We have called Cork home for almost 50 years, and our longevity is a testament to the dedication of our talented workforce.

“This very significant expansion will allow us to increase our manufacturing capacity and ensure that we can continue to meet the global demand for our existing and future products.”

PepsiCo R&D senior director Breda Kennedy said: “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 our business has driven the growth of our R&D team, from just 10 people in 2007 to more than 130 today.

“This continued investment will further strengthen our ability to attract the best talent across digital, engineering, analytics, food science, sensory and microbiology.”

Mary Buckley, executive director of IDA Ireland, said continued investment in research and development “is central” to the body’s strategy.

“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,” she added.