Image via PepsiCo //

Will definitely be a hit…

As stress levels continue to climb as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s clear the crisis is having numerous effects on physical health. From cracked teeth to insomnia and mental health, the pandemic is proving to be severely disenfranchising for individuals, and PepsiCo is attempting to launch a new drink solve all of those extra obstacles.

The drink was born out of an internal competition started by the Pepsi CEO, with the winners attempting to help consumers de-stress and relax before bed. Soon Pepsi went to work to make it a reality, making it the fastest product to ever come out of the company. The drink (which will initially only come in blackberry lavender flavour) contains 200 milligrams of L-theanin, an amino acid that’s found in green and black teas as well as certain mushrooms. It also contains 10% of the recommended daily value of magnesium.

Speaking on the inclusion of L-theanine in the drink, Emily Silver, vice president of innovation and capabilities at Pepsi’s North American beverages unit, said “From a scientific and regulatory perspective, we feel really good about making that claim around L-theanine. Specifically, we have safety in clinical data to prove that it works.

“I think we’re launching this at a time when there’s more consumer interest than there previously was, given everything that’s going on from a macro perspective.”

The new drink ‘Driftwell’ is said to be available across U.S. e-commerce sites in December, and will be available in physical grocery stores in the first quarter of 2021. Fingers crossed it proves to be effective and we get it here in Australia soon as well…