# PepsiCo Adds J&J CEO Joaquin Duato to Board
PepsiCo is adding Joaquin Duato, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Johnson & Johnson, to its board of directors as an independent member, effective December 1, 2026. Duato, 64, will sit on the Audit Committee, the company confirmed September 17.
The Appointment
Duato has led Johnson & Johnson as CEO since 2022 and as Chairman since 2023, capping a 35-year career at the healthcare conglomerate that included global oversight of pharmaceuticals, consumer health, and technology businesses. PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Ramon Laguarta said Duato's background in "strategic transformation, portfolio optimization and innovation" aligns directly with the company's push to evolve its food and beverage lineup and invest in growth opportunities.
Robert C. Pohlad, Chair of PepsiCo's Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, highlighted Duato's experience managing large, regulated global operations and his track record in research-based innovation — capabilities that translate readily to a supplier navigating shifting consumer demand across the convenience and foodservice channels.
Why It Matters for C-Stores
PepsiCo generated nearly $94 billion in net revenue in 2025, anchored by brands — Lay's, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream — that are among the highest-velocity SKUs on the forecourt and inside the store. Many of those brands individually top $1 billion in estimated annual retail sales, and convenience operators depend on them to drive basket size and dispensed-beverage pull-through.
Board composition at a supplier of PepsiCo's scale matters to channel buyers because it shapes long-term portfolio strategy — which brands get investment, which get rationalized, and how the company approaches category management partnerships with large chains and single-store operators (SSOs) alike. Duato's pharmaceutical background, particularly his oversight of complex supply chains and innovation pipelines, could reinforce PepsiCo's ability to manage operational resilience at a time when input costs and supply-chain volatility remain top-of-mind for c-store buyers.
What's Next
Duato's appointment is the latest governance move as PepsiCo publicly frames itself as a "global convenient food and beverage leader" — language that signals continued prioritization of the convenience and foodservice channels over traditional grocery as growth vectors. For operators, the practical read is continuity: no immediate change to trade terms or category strategy is implied by a board election, but the addition of an executive with a strong innovation and risk-oversight resume suggests PepsiCo's long-range portfolio decisions will receive rigorous board-level scrutiny. Operators should watch for how PepsiCo's annual investor day messaging evolves heading into 2027.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
