肯德基表示，已与可口可乐达成协议，成为其在美国数千家餐厅的饮料供应商，这对长期供应商百事公司构成打击。肯德基美国门店转向可口可乐的供应将于1月开始。
KFC said it has struck a deal with Coca-Cola as its beverage provider at thousands of U.S. restaurants, a blow to longtime supplier PepsiCo. The switch to Coke at KFC U.S. would begin in January.
根据肯德基内部消息，百事公司仍将为肯德基国际业务供货——这是餐饮连锁集团规模更大的业务板块。一位知情人士表示，百事也将继续为塔可钟提供饮料。百胜旗下这些业务板块的增长速度快于肯德基在美国的业务。
PepsiCo will still supply many markets for KFC International—the much bigger arm of the restaurant chain, according to an internal KFC message. Pepsi will also continue to serve Taco Bell, a person familiar with the matter said. Those divisions within Yum Brands are growing faster than KFC’s U.S. business.
然而，这一数十年合作关系的转变，可能在百事公司饮料业务本就艰难之际进一步削弱其业绩。这也将加剧可口可乐与百事之间长期的竞争。
Still, the shift in a decadeslong partnership could further hurt PepsiCo at a time when its beverage business is struggling. It also will sting in the long-running Coke-Pepsi rivalry.
百事公司股价在周四下跌，此前《华尔街日报》率先报道了该交易谈判的消息。
PepsiCo shares fell Thursday after The Wall Street Journal first reported about the deal talks.
百事公司首席执行官拉瓜塔表示，其公司在软饮料市场竞争力不足，包括其标志性百事品牌。百事长期与可口可乐争夺汽水销量榜首，但近年来被百事饮料等品牌抢占市场份额。百事旗下的山露也出现销量下滑，部分原因是能量饮料销量上升。
PepsiCo Chief Executive Ramon Laguarta has said his company isn’t competing well in soft drinks, including its signature Pepsi brand. Pepsi has long battled for the top spot in soda sales with Coca-Cola, but it has lost ground to beverages like Dr Pepper. The company’s Mountain Dew has also had slumping sales, due in part to rising sales of energy drinks.
对百事公司而言，失去数千家肯德基门店的影响尤为深远。百事公司曾拥有肯德基，直至1997年将其餐饮业务剥离出去，其中包括必胜客和塔可钟。近年来，百事还失去了其他一些大客户，如万豪酒店和好市多食品广场。不过，百事最近又将地铁快餐加入了其客户名单。
For PepsiCo, losing thousands of KFC locations hits close to home. PepsiCo owned KFC until it spun off its restaurant divisions, which included Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, in 1997. The beverage giant has also lost other big accounts of late, including Marriott hotels and the Costco food court. PepsiCo, however, recently added Subway to its list of customers.
根据行业跟踪机构《饮料消化》的数据，肯德基是美国餐饮连锁企业中百事产品的最大销售渠道之一。其美国门店目前供应百事、星冰乐、山露和 Aquafina，此外还有自有品牌的柠檬水和冰茶。
KFC is one of the biggest sellers of Pepsi among U.S. restaurant chains, according to Beverage Digest, an industry tracker. Its restaurants carry Pepsi, Starry, Mountain Dew and Aquafina in the U.S., along with the chain’s own lemonade and ice tea.
肯德基目前的讨论说明，餐饮企业正在评估其在高利润业务板块中的饮料产品。该连锁店最近在其部分全球门店推出了自有品牌的气柠檬水、波波清凉饮和奶昔。
KFC’s current discussions illustrate how restaurants are evaluating their beverage offerings in a high-margin corner of the business. The chain recently launched its own line of sparkling lemonades, boba refreshers and shakes at some of its worldwide locations.
随着连锁企业寻求能够吸引年轻消费者并带来更好利润的新产品，餐饮业的饮料竞争日益激烈。快餐连锁企业一直在争夺消费者，并经常诉诸折扣来实现这一目标。星巴克及其他咖啡连锁企业多年来一直提供新颖的冷饮以刺激销售，而现在快餐品牌也在寻求效仿。
Beverages have become increasingly competitive in restaurants as chains seek new items that will appeal to younger consumers, and deliver better profits. Fast-food chains have been battling for consumers and often resorting to discounts to do so. Starbucks and other coffee chains have for years offered novelty cold drinks to generate sales, and now fast-food brands are seeking to do the same.
百事公司与百胜旗下的塔可贝尔保持着密切关系。这家饮料巨头为墨西哥风格餐厅品牌开发了百事可乐山露巴哈冲击，该饮料自推出以来已创造数十亿美元的销售额。肯德基在饮料方面的重视程度不及塔可贝尔。
PepsiCo has had a close relationship with Yum Brands chain Taco Bell. The soda giant developed Mountain Dew Baja Blast for the Mexican-style restaurant brand, and the drink has generated billions of dollars in sales since. KFC hasn’t placed as much emphasis on beverages as Taco Bell.
根据市场研究公司Technomic的数据，肯德基曾是美国领先的鸡肉连锁店，如今按销售额排名位列第五。该公司一直在努力复兴其品牌，以应对多年销售下滑和最近的门店关闭。
KFC, once the leading U.S. chicken chain, is now the fifth-largest by sales, according to market-research firm Technomic. It has been working to revive its brand after years of declining sales and recent closures.
公司正在推广三明治、鸡翅和鸡条，以摆脱其传统的带骨鸡块桶。它还推出了一个名为“酱汁之肯德基”（Saucy by KFC）的初创分支品牌，提供鸡条、酱料和饮料。百事公司已与该品牌合作开发了一些这些新颖饮品。
The company is pushing sandwiches, wings and tenders to diversify away from its traditional bone-in buckets of chicken. It also started a fledgling offshoot, called Saucy by KFC, that serves tenders, sauces and drinks. PepsiCo has worked with the brand on some of those novelty concoctions.
请将稿件发送至Heather Haddon的heather.haddon@wsj.com和Laura Cooper的laura.cooper@wsj.com。
Write to Heather Haddon at heather.haddon@wsj.com and Laura Cooper at laura.cooper@wsj.com