#PepsiCo launching drink to help stressed-out people sleep

The company whose drinks perk people up is now putting us to bed.

Doctors report that the coronavirus pandemic is causing insomnia levels to spike nationwide. Now, PepsiCo is debuting a new drink to help people sleep during these stressful times — Driftwell “enhanced” water.

“We started this project before COVID, but especially now with all the stress, we’re juggling a lot of things and need sleep,” Emily Silver, vice president of innovation and capabilities at PepsiCo Beverages North America, told Fast Company.

To help customers “sip into relaxation,” the zero-calorie noncarbonated water contains 200 milligrams of L-theanine, an ingredient that’s been found to improve sleep quality and mitigate stress.

“From a scientific and regulatory perspective, we feel really good about making that claim around L-theanine,” Silver told CNBC News. “Specifically, we have safety in clinical data to prove that it works.”

Not only that, but each 7.5-ounce mini can contains 10% of the recommended daily intake of magnesium and blackberry-lavender flavoring to make it go down easy, the company said.

Spawned during a company-wide competition just last year, cans of Driftwell will hit e-commerce sites nationwide in December and brick-and-mortar outlets by 2021, shattering PepsiCo’s record for fastest product launch, according to Silver. She added that the premiere coincides with “a time when there’s more consumer interest than there previously was” given the tumultuous times.

PepsiCo also likely hopes to cash in on the functional water craze, which accounted for a $2.97 billion market last year in the U.S., with sales slated to skyrocket by nearly 5% this year, according to research data from Euromonitor International.

In fact, more companies are turning to “functional foods” whose purpose goes beyond merely tasting good. Notable examples of these foods with benefits include gut-boosting Activia yogurt to calming CBD gummies, Fast Company reported.

“You can have function in the foods and beverages you’re consuming,” said Darren Seifer, food and beverage analyst with the research firm NPD Group. “It’s not just about thirst. It’s not just about sustenance. It’s about helping you feel good.”