Pepsi’s Peeps-flavored soda is back
By Jordan Valinsky, CNN Business
Pepsi is bringing back its Peeps-flavored soda, and this time it’s easier than an Easter egg hunt to find.
For the first time, “Pepsi x Peeps” is available for sale at retailers nationwide, a change from its debut two years ago, when it only gave away a few thousand of the sodas in a contest. Pepsi said in a statement that its mass release was prompted by popular demand following its “unforgettable debut” in 2021 when it the soda “trended everywhere” and sold for hundreds of dollars on the resale market.
“Pepsi x Peeps” is a collaboration between the soda maker and Just Born Quality Confections, the candy maker that makes Peeps. The soda mixes the taste of a Pepsi with the “pillowy-soft and sweet” marshmallow flavor of Peeps. It’s available to buy in 7.5 ounce cans and 20 ounce bottles for a limited time.
Pepsi approached Peeps about partnering for a spring-inspired flavored, according to Todd Kaplan, vice president of marketing of Pepsi. “Taste is really important to customers,” he previously told CNN. “They want sweet and they want to connect to things emotionally. Peeps has its own subculture we wanted to tap into.”
Pepsi regularly releases seasonal flavors to generate excitement for its brand. In recent years, it has sold hot chocolate and apple pie-flavored Pepsi drinks to celebrate the holidays. The Peeps-flavored soda is the first-time ever Pepsi has used marshmallow flavoring.
Last month, Just Born announced that Bob Born, the “Father of Peeps” died at 98. He used his engineering skills to “mechanize the marshmallow-forming process,” reducing the time it took to make a Peeps package from 27 hours to just 6 minutes,” according to the company’s website.
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