Varun Berry , a PepsiCo veteran of 17 years, will take over as CEO of its foods division in India, where the US foods and beverages major looks to add healthier foods to its portfolio and break open the low-priced snacks segment for itself.

Before this, Mr Berry was at PepsiCo Dubai and was the CEO of International Dairy & Juice, a joint venture between PepsiCo and Almarai to manufacture and market dairy products and juice in Middle East, Africa, the Indian sub-continent and South East Asia.

Mr Berry, in his late 40s, succeeds Frito-Lay’s former head Gautham Mukkavilli who has been relocated to the firm’s New York office.

Besides stepping up PepsiCo India’s portfolio transformation to healthier foods, Mr Berry’s immediate priority will be to counter stiff competition in the snacks category, which the US major has dominated in India for more than a decade.

An alumni of Punjab Engineering College and an MBA from Panjab University, Mr Berry cut his marketing teeth at Brooke Bond India in 1986, where he worked as marketing manager for six years.

After joining PepsiCo, Mr Berry has worked across markets such as the Middle East, Philippines, Vietnam and India, on categories including dairy, juice and tea.