PepsiCo Inc. will use its Tropicana brand on a line of carbonated soft drinks for the first time this spring.
The Purchase, N.Y., company plans to begin selling the new drinks in orange, grape, strawberry and diet orange flavors in mid-April. They will contain 1 percent juice.
Dave DeCecco, a spokesman for the snack and beverage company, Friday said the drinks will replace Pepsi’s Slice brand.
Pepsi acquired the Tropicana brand in 1998, but until now, it hasn’t used the brand name on carbonated soft drinks. The company currently sells noncarbonated juice drinks under the Tropicana Twister name.
DeCecco’s comments came in response to a report in Beverage Digest, an industry newsletter.
In a research note, Morgan Stanley analyst Bill Pecoriello said he felt the fizzy versions of Tropicana Twister were “a step in the right direction.”
“We have been hoping for some time that Pepsi would leverage the healthy image of the Tropicana brand in the carbonated category,” Pecoriello said.
The new line of Tropicana Twister sodas will provide about 20 percent of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C.
