Breakfast Soda: PepsiCo Says, Why Not?

In a move the company says is a response to growing demand from consumers, PepsiCo has introduced Kickstart from Mountain Dew, a carbonated breakfast soda with 5% fruit juice. The drink, which will come in orange citrus and fruit punch flavors, has the sort of visually distinctive 16 ounce cans usually reserved for energy drinks like Monster and Red Bull. But PepsiCo seem to be trying to duck the controversy that has lately surrounded that category.

Kickstart has 92 milligrams of caffeine per can, more than a regular can of Mountain Dew but significantly less than PepsiCo’s energy drink, Amp, which contains 142 milligrams. In comparison, a 12-ounce cup of Starbucks coffee has 240 milligrams. Consumer groups and lawmakers have called on the FDA to investigate the safety of high-caffeine energy drinks. Several deaths, including one of a 14-year-old, have been liked to energy drinks. The New York State Attorney General launched an investigation into the pricing practices of energy drink makers including Monster and PepsiCo last summer.

Unlike its parent brand, Mountain Dew, Kickstart uses artificial sweeteners to reduce the calories per can to 80. Kickstart also contains Vitamins B and C. Covering the range for breakfast, PepsiCo also markets the Tropicana brand of orange juice.

Just because you can doesn’t mean you should…

Click here to read more in USA Today story, click here to read more in The Week, and click here to read more from ConscienHealth on the safety of energy drinks.

Breakfast Time, image by Hanna Pauli / Wikimedia

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