PepsiCo Rumored to Be Closing in on Poppi Acquisition

March 14, 2025

Beverage and snack behemoth appears to be taking the “purchase” option to jump into prebiotic and better-for-you sodas segment while other competitors have launched their own brands in the last month.

Andy Hanacek

According to Bloomberg News and other reports, PepsiCo Inc. is in the process of acquiring better-for-you soda brand Poppi, and could shell out more than $1.5 billion for the brand. Reports noted that the beverage and snacks mega-company was in advanced talks on the deal and an announcement could come as soon as next week.

This revelation comes on the heels of The Coca-Cola Co. and Talking Rain Beverage Co. each launching their own prebiotic soda brands in February, aiming to take advantage of the heightened interest consumers seem to have in better-for-you beverages, particularly those with functional ingredients. Functional sodas, as well, have been growing, offering consumers prebiotics, probiotics and fiber — typically not found in traditional carbonated sodas.

Coca-Cola’s Simply Pop launched in February through e-commerce and in select markets in the U.S., with expansion to additional markets expected throughout 2025, according to a release from the company upon launch. The sodas are housed under the Simply juice brand to build on its familiarity with consumers. Becca Kerr, CEO of Nutrition for The Coca-Cola Co., said that wellness-focused Gen Z and Millennial consumers are interested in juice and prebiotic sodas, and “since many brands in this category are new, they were looking to align with names they know and trust for both quality and taste.”

Meanwhile, at the end of February, Talking Rain — which is best-known for its zero-sugar Sparkling Ice carbonated beverage line — announced the release of its new Popwell line, which offers consumers prebiotics and immunity support in six flavors, three of which are caffeinated. Oscar Mayorquín, COO at Talking Rain, said the company’s research “suggested that consumers were dissatisfied with the taste of some of the prebiotic beverages currently on the market,” so Talking Rain added emphasis on its flavor-forward approach. Popwell has rolled out in e-commerce and retailers around the country.

Back to Poppi, however. The company was founded in Austin, Texas, and has grown in popularity since appearing on the Shark Tank TV show, where it received an investment from one of the “sharks.” An acquisition would shake up the better-for-you soda segment significantly, and it would certainly fit with the trends so far in 2025.

Neither PepsiCo nor Poppi representatives had commented on these reports at presstime.

About the Author

Andy Hanacek | Senior Editor

Andy Hanacek has covered meat, poultry, bakery and snack foods as a B2B editor for nearly 20 years, and has toured hundreds of processing plants and food companies, sharing stories of innovation and technological advancement throughout the food supply chain. In 2018, he won a Folio:Eddie Award for his unique "From the Editor's Desk" video blogs, and he has brought home additional awards from Folio and ASBPE over the years. In addition, Hanacek led the Meat Industry Hall of Fame for several years and was vice president of communications for We R Food Safety, a food safety software and consulting company.