Pepsi Considering A Line Of “Craft” Fountain Sodas Made With Real Sugar

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In the race to create sweet, carbonated beverages people actually want to drink, PepsiCo is looking into peddling a line of “craft” fountain sodas made with sugar, instead of the high fructose corn syrup used to sweeten many other beverages you might find on tap.

Pepsi says the Stubborn Soda line will come in flavors like black cherry with tarragon, orange hibiscus, pineapple cream and agave vanilla cream, reports the Associated Press, further separating the “craft” sodas from the traditional image of Pepsi products.

Amid a growing trend that’s moving away from bubbly, sweetened drinks, big beverage companies have been scrambling to figure out how to sell drinks to shoppers who are now looking for more wholesome drinks like teas and waters.

To meet the burgeoning demand for more products that give off that natural feel, Pepsi already has Caleb’s Kola and Mountain Dewshine, both marketed as craft sodas that come in glass bottles, as well as Pepsi True, which is sweetened with stevia and comes in a green can similar to Coca-Cola’s Coke Life, also sweetened with stevia.

“It’s very new, they’re still learning from it and reaching out,” a Pepsi representative said about its craft sodas in bottles, adding that Stubborn Sodas is in an “incubation” phase ad there are no restaurants clients lined up yet to announce.

PepsiCo looking to launch ‘craft’ fountain sodas [Associated Press]

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist