NEW YORK - PepsiCo Inc said on Monday it will combine the North American operations of Pepsi Bottling Group Inc and PepsiAmericas Inc in a new bottling unit to be run by Pepsi Bottling's current chief executive, Eric Foss.

The new unit, called PepsiCo Bottling North America, will be effective once PepsiCo's acquisitions of its two largest bottlers close.

The unit will comprise all current Pepsi Bottling and PepsiAmericas operations in North America and will account for about three-quarters of the PepsiCo drinks sold there. (Reporting by Martinne Geller;

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