The Consumer Goods Forum has unveiled a new set of industry-wide resolutions designed to promote health and wellness. On the first day of its annual global summit in Barcelona today (15 June), the Forum committed to improving access to healthier products, providing “transparent, fact-based” information to allow consumers to make informed dietary decisions and promoting educational programmes that raise awareness of healthy lifestyles. The collaborative work to promote these resolutions... ...Read more »

PepsiCo has completed the acquisition of a 66% stake in Wimm-Bill-Dann, it said last night (3 February).The snacks and soft drinks giant announced in December that it had struck a deal to buy a stake in the Russian firm for US$3.8bn. PepsiCo said the deal would make it the “largest food-and-beverage business” in the country. The acquisition has increased PepsiCo’s total ownership of Wimm-Bill-Dann to around 77%. The firm has accumulated the additional 11% share since 2 December. PepsiCo... ...Read more »

Following a review of more than 5,600 creative submissions – the most ever in a single year of competition – Doritos and Pepsi MAX today revealed the names of the 10 finalists in the Crash the Super Bowl challenge. These 10 finalists will go on to compete to be one of six consumer-created ads – three for Doritos and three for Pepsi MAX – airing during the Super Bowl XLV broadcast, Feb. 6, on FOX. As the contest enters its next phase, Doritos and Pepsi MAX fans in the United... ...Read more »

PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay North America snacks business plans to make 50% of its products from natural ingredients by the end of the year.The target, which includes Lay’s potato chips, Tostitos tortilla chips and SunChips snacks, will see the products made using ingredients without artificial or synthetic ingredients. This will include around six dozen varieties of Frito-Lay products. “Many of the unflavoured snacks in our portfolio are already made with all-natural ingredients, and we’ve... ...Read more »

PepsiCo is set to launch a portable children’s snack made from squeezable fruit in the US. The company’s Tropicana Products division said the product, Tropicana Tropolis, will be available in select stores in limited markets from next month. If successful, expanded distribution is expected in 2012. PepsiCo has set its sights on boosting global sales of “nutrition” products from US$10bn now to $20bn by 2030. “Moms have fond memories of Tropicana from their own childhoods,... ...Read more »

PepsiCo has increased its investment in O.N.E. – the Los Angeles based coconut water company - thereby acquiring a majority stake in the company. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. This represents a second round of investment in O.N.E. by PepsiCo and Catterton Partners, a private equity firm based in Greenwich, Conn.”We are very excited to deepen our relationship with PepsiCo and Catterton Partners. With demand, supply, distribution, consumer education, and the capital... ...Read more »

PepsiCo is planning further acquisitions as part of its bid to treble sales of “nutritious” food and beverages, the company said yesterday (2 December), after announcing its move to buy Russia dairy, baby food and juice maker Wimm-Bill-Dann. The US group is aiming to grow sales of healthier food and drinks from a current US$10bn to $30bn by 2020 through expansion in dairy, grains, functional products and fruit and vegetables. The acquisition of Wimm-Bill-Dann will take those sales to... ...Read more »

Food manufacturers have joined forces with the Canadian government on a campaign aimed at helping consumers understand nutrition labels on food products. Around 34 firms, including Kellogg, PepsiCo, Campbell Soup Co. and Kraft Foods have signed up to the Nutrition Facts Education Campaign, which was launched on Friday (22 October). Health Canada, the country’s government department dealing with national health policy and Food & Consumer Products of Canada (FCPC), the industry association,... ...Read more »

PepsiCo has announced the transformation of its popular US lemon lime soda, Sierra Mist, into a beverage with entirely natural ingredients, Sierra Mist Natural. PepsiCo has removed preservatives and artificial flavours from the drink, sweetening it with sugar (as opposed to the widely-used high fructose corn syrup or HCFS, an almost ubiquitous sweetener in the US and subject of a number of health-related inquiries). “New Sierra Mist Natural has been stripped of everything artificial and is naturally... ...Read more »

PepsiCo is to create a nutrition business unit to develop new products in a series of food categories. The US food and drink giant said yesterday (7 October) that it has set up a “global nutrition group” to “deliver breakthrough innovation” in fruit and vegetables, grains, dairy and functional foods. “The creation of this global nutrition group is part of our long-term strategy to grow our nutrition businesses from about $10bn in revenues today to $30bn by 2020,”... ...Read more »