PepsiCo deepens Iraq partnership with manufacturing, agriculture deals

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – PepsiCo has inked agreements with two Iraqi partners to increase food and beverage production, boost agricultural supply chains, and create employment, adding to a string of US investments announced during Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s visit to Washington. The agreements, inked during the U.S.-Iraq High-Level Business Summit organized by the US Chamber of Commerce, strengthen PepsiCo’s collaborations with Baghdad Soft Drinks Company (BSDC), its long-standing bottling partner in Iraq, and Green Iraq Company (GICO). According to the deal with BSDC, PepsiCo will aim to increase yearly production capacity to more than 250 million beverage cases, maintaining Iraq’s position as one of the company’s major manufacturing and bottling centers in the Middle East. The expansion is planned to create new employment in manufacturing, engineering, logistics, and distribution, as well as teach and provide technical skills to Iraqi engineers and technicians. A separate deal with GICO seeks to increase food production capacity and agricultural productivity by bringing advanced irrigation methods and farming practices to local farmers, therefore boosting Iraq’s goal to become a regional food and beverage export center. According to PepsiCo, the program aims to boost domestic supply chains by encouraging more local procurement and assisting Iraqi farmers in improving yields and sustainability. The deals were part of a series of commercial understandings struck at the summit, in which US and Iraqi firms announced commitments in energy, banking, aviation, infrastructure, and manufacturing as Baghdad strives to diversify its economy away from oil and attract foreign investment. Baghdad Soft Drinks Company has been working with PepsiCo for over four decades, and both agreements were signed on behalf of BSDC and GICO by majority stakeholder Tarek Al Hassan. The investment demonstrates global firms’ rising interest in Iraq’s consumer products industry, as improved economic circumstances and government reforms stimulate more private sector investment and industrial growth.