Indra Nooyi and PepsiCo charging forward

The Economist has an interesting article on Indra Nooyi and the shifting direction of PepsiCo, a leading manufacturer of snack foods. On March 22 Ms. Nooyi announced that Pepsi was establishing targets of healthiness amongst it's myriad of snack products.

By 2015 the firm aims to reduce the salt in some of its biggest brands by 25%; by 2020, it hopes to reduce the amount of added sugar in its drinks by 25% and the amount of saturated fat in certain snacks by 15%. Pepsi also recently announced that it would be removing all its sugary drinks from schools around the world by 2012.

One could argue that this is in response to First Lady Michelle Obama's speech to the Grocery Manufactures Association, but as The Economist notes:

Under Ms Nooyi, who became boss in 2006, it has stepped up its diversification into products it calls “better for you” and “good for you”, including fruit juices, nuts and porridge (oatmeal, to Americans). Ms Nooyi does not see this as a case of trading profits for virtue. Instead, she insists both are possible—an idea expressed in the firm’s syrupy motto: “Performance with purpose.”

Ms. Nooyi isn't the first woman to strong arm corporate culture at Pepsi Co to change the direction of the company... I'm looking at you Joan Crawford (warning below video is NSFW)