PepsiCo has announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire a leading North American creator of fermented probiotic and kombucha beverages, KeVita.
PepsiCo Premium Nutrition general manager and vice president Chris Lansing welcomed KeVita into the PepsiCo family.
“Under the leadership of CEO Bill Moses, KeVita has become an innovative, high–growth brand that is transforming the functional beverage space. This announcement is further evidence of PepsiCo’s focus on delivering ‘Performance with Purpose’ by continuing to evolve our health and wellness offerings to meet consumers’ changing needs,” Lansing said.
KeVita CEO and co-founder Bill Moses said that joining the PepsiCo family will provide an opportunity for KeVita to extend its trend-forward beverages to a broader audience. “We’re looking forward to more consumers experiencing the KeVita brand and to leveraging PepsiCo’s marketing and distribution capabilities,” he said.
According to PepsiCo KeVita has a loyal and rapidly growing consumer base in the fast growing functional beverage space and is a leader in fermented probiotic and kombucha beverages.
A PepsiCo spokeswoman told C&I Week the company believes the product can have global appeal, however: “There are currently no existing plans to expand to global distribution. Our main focus at this point is ensuring a smooth transition.”
Kombucha is a fermented, lightly effervescent, tea-based drink with reputed health benefits. This ancient elixir originated in China and is often called the ‘tea of immortality’.
As the community increasingly seeks out healthy options, Kombucha offers a rapidly growing alternative to carbonated soft drink with a lower sugar content.
In Australia, various brands have entered the market, including Herbs of Life, Mojo and Remedy. All of these brands are reporting strong growth from an increasingly mainstream consumer base.
For more information on kombucha, watch out for the February/March issue of C&I Retailing magazine.