PepsiCo Slashes 1,000 North American Roles as KFC Taps Stay Open in Eight Markets

PepsiCo is preparing to cut roughly 1,000 jobs across its North American food and beverage operations, a restructuring Reuters reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the plans. The move comes as the company confronts sluggish soda sales and softer demand for its premium snacks at home, alongside rising input costs.

North America chief Ram Krishnan told staff that organizational changes would be rolled out over the course of this week, according to Bloomberg Law. PepsiCo frames the overhaul as a bid to simplify its business in the face of weak demand and higher expenses. The Wall Street Journal first flagged the scale of the reductions, which Reuters reported at about 1,000 positions.

Investors took the news in stride rather than panicking. The stock was down 1.1% at €127.20 in recent trading, with an earlier reading showing a 0.8% decline to €127.58.

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Eight-Market KFC Extension

Separately, PepsiCo said Friday it has renewed its beverage partnership with KFC across eight countries. The agreement covers Australia and India, plus six European markets: the UK, Spain, Germany, France, the Netherlands and Belgium. Beyond continuing to supply drinks, the two companies will work together on offers tailored to local tastes in each market.

The extension does not reach KFC's US restaurants. According to QSR Web, those locations are expected to begin switching their beverage supplier to Coca-Cola in January 2027.

The twin developments sketch out a company pulling two levers at once — trimming costs where demand has cooled in its home region, while shoring up international fountain rights in markets where its brands retain a firm foothold.

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