US: PBG chairman prepares his farewells

The executive chairman at The Pepsi Bottling Group is set to stand down at the end of this month.

John Cahill, whose departure from the world's largest Pepsi bottler was announced in July last year, will leave the company on 31 March. Cahill, 49, will be replaced as executive chairman at PBG by Barry Beracha, the company said late last week.

"John Cahill leaves an indelible mark on the history of PBG," Beracha said. "During his tenure, the company and its shareholders benefited from his strong leadership and keen industry insight. John's focus on growing shareholder value yielded substantial returns. We appreciate the time he has devoted to ensuring a smooth transition to president and CEO Eric Foss. PBG's board and his colleagues wish John much success as he moves on to the next chapter in his professional life."

Cahill, who has been with PBG for 24 years and became president and CEO in 2001, stood down from those two posts in July last year. Cahill will cut his final link with PBG next week "to pursue other opportunities", the company said last year. Eric Foss replaced Cahill as president and CEO.

Separately, PBG said last week that two current board members are set to stand down later this year. Thomas Kean and Clay Small will not stand for re-election at PBG's annual shareholder meeting on 23 May, with Javier Teruel, vice chairman of the Colgate-Palmolive Company, and Hugh Johnston, PepsiCo's executive vice president of operations, standing for election for the first time.