PepsiCo signs $50m deal with Beyonce and orders plant closure for its workers

PepsiCo and Coca-Cola have spent over $330 million on campaigns involving entertainment and sports figures in 2012. Pepsi’s move is in line with its new campaign, “Live for Now,” that positions the brand on the pop-culture forefront around the world.

At the same time the company announces the closure of its bottling plant in Reserve, Louisiana that has operated for 43 years. The 60 employees are offered a “job search orientation session” by the Louisiana Workforce Commission.

So while PepsiCo takes good care of Beyonce it leaves its workers in Louisiana in the hands of state authorities to find new jobs.

PepsiCo says the move is to preserve the “long-term health of our business”. The closure was announced in November and will take place in December as Christmas approaches. The health of its business and that of its employees are clearly worlds apart.