PepsiCo’s CEO of International Beverages, Eugene Willemsen, identified shifting Chinese consumer behaviour and artificial intelligence deployment as the two forces shaping the company’s growth outside North America, in remarks aired on CNBC on May 13.
Willemsen, who has spent more than 30 years at PepsiCo and oversees its beverage business across nearly 190 countries, told the network that Chinese consumers are demanding more from their beverage experience, going beyond product and into the broader moment of consumption. The CNBC segment did not define the parameters of that demand in specific category terms, but the framing aligns with a broader premiumisation trend reshaping soft drinks and functional beverages across urban China.
On AI, Willemsen’s remarks follow a Bloomberg report from March 2026 in which PepsiCo’s Asia-Pacific head, Anne Tse, said the company is deploying AI across precision agriculture, manufacturing management, and consumer analytics in China, with the goal of expanding capacity without proportional increases in headcount.
The commercial context is material. PepsiCo’s International Beverages franchise posted net revenue growth of 2% and unit volume growth of 1.5% in FY2025, with China named alongside the Middle East and Pakistan as volume growth contributors, per the company’s annual report filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. In Q1 2025, the international beverages segment recorded 11% organic growth, according to company filings, with China again cited among the leading markets.
For African beverage operators, the strategic read is not about China directly. It is about what a company managing beverage volume across 190 markets is choosing to prioritise: consumer experience as a demand driver, and AI as an operational lever. Both conversations are arriving in African markets with urgency. As Drinkabl.media reported this week, Nigeria’s Gen Z consumers are already reconfiguring their expectations of what a beverage brand owes them, at a pace that many established players have not yet fully priced into their planning.
Willemsen’s tenure has spanned Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. He previously led PepsiCo’s Sub-Saharan Africa operations following the Pioneer Foods acquisition in South Africa in 2019. The China focus in his current brief reflects where volume headroom and premiumisation upside are most concentrated in PepsiCo’s non-North America portfolio.
Read More
- Nigeria’s Gen Z Beverage Reset Goes Deeper Than Brands Priced In
- Industry News & Analysis on Drinkabl.media
