PepsiCo is forging ahead with additions to its portfolio of healthy snacks, with the acquisition of a small young company and the rollout of a new line of children’s products.
PepsiCo has bought Health Warrior, a seven-year-old company based in Richmond, Va., that makes snacks from superfoods like chia and pumpkin seeds. Energy bars are the company’s main product line; it also produces protein powder and “mug muffins” in paperboard cups. The bars will complement PepsiCo’s lineup of power bars under its Quaker brand.
Health Warrior’s acquisition is the first investment under PepsiCo’s “The Hive,” an initiative to bolster its portfolio of healthier products by acquiring smaller companies.
In addition, PepsiCo has rolled out a line of high-protein children’s snacks called Imag!ne. Cheese stars, made with real cheese, have six grams of protein per serving; yogurt crisps, with real yogurt, have four grams of protein and eight of whole grains per serving.
