PURCHASE, N.Y., Oct. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) today announced it will celebrate Manufacturing Day in the United States by ringing the Closing Bell® at the New York Stock Exchange with associates from the company's supply chain. Manufacturing Day was created to raise awareness about the rapidly evolving manufacturing industry in the U.S., while inspiring future generations to explore careers in the field. PepsiCo's bell-ringing participants represent some of the company's top frontline associates who, together with tens of thousands of colleagues across the country, make, move and deliver beloved food and beverage brands, including Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana, every day.

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PepsiCo is one of North America's largest manufacturers, operating more than 100 manufacturing facilities, over 600 warehouses and distribution centers and a fleet of nearly 59,000 vehicles across its three North America Divisions: Frito-Lay North America (FLNA), North America Beverages (NAB) and Quaker Foods North America.

"Increased consumer demand and the need to compete in an ever-changing marketplace have created opportunities for us to reimagine how we go to market," said Grace Puma, Executive Vice President, Global Operations of PepsiCo. "As a result, our manufacturing facilities look very different today than they did even a few years ago, and the transformation of our business and facilities requires us to think differently, not only about our equipment and processes, but also about the skills our workforce and the next generation of talent will need for manufacturing jobs in the future."

Across the portfolio, PepsiCo is strengthening its manufacturing teams with improved leadership pipelines, technical skills and training programs, as well as campus hiring.


    --  For example, earlier this year FLNA began a pilot training program in
        Perry, Georgia to encourage students who are still in high school to
        explore technical careers. The division partnered with the local school
        district to co-create coursework unique to its industrial maintenance
        program.
    --  Similarly, NAB is working with technical schools in the Houston, Texas
        area to identify and hire high schools seniors who could benefit from
        earning co-op credits and valuable work experience while finishing their
        studies.

PepsiCo invests in its manufacturing facilities with a focus on efficiency, improved outputs, and cost savings, supporting new capabilities and its expanded portfolio. Examples of recent developments include NAB's Total Process Management (TPM) Edge Ignite and GeoBox, and FLNA's Geographic Enterprise Solution (GES), initiatives that aim to drive productivity, quality and availability of products throughout the country.

Further, the company continues to innovate to help advance progress against its ambitious Performance with Purpose 2025 Agenda.


    --  In the past year, PepsiCo's U.S. beverage facilities have used 220
        million fewer kilowatt hours of energy and saved 1 billion gallons of
        water - that would be enough energy to provide 20,000 homes with
        electricity and 10,000 homes with water for an entire year.
    --  All of Frito-Lay's U.S. manufacturing facilities combined send less than
        1.5 percent of waste to landfills, and nearly 40 percent of its
        long-haul trucks run on compressed natural gas, which emit 23 percent
        less GHG tailpipe emissions than the diesel trucks they replace.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated approximately $63 billion in net revenue in 2016, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

At the heart of PepsiCo is Performance with Purpose - our fundamental belief that the success of our company is inextricably linked to the sustainability of the world around us. We believe that continuously improving the products we sell, operating responsibly to protect our planet and empowering people around the world enables PepsiCo to run a successful global company that creates long-term value for society and our shareholders. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com.

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SOURCE PepsiCo