Pepsi To Bring Back Aspartame-Sweetened Diet Pepsi By September

Image courtesy of Ben Schumin

Weeks after it was rumored that continued falling sales would propel PepsiCo to once again change the sweetener used in its main calorie-free beverage, Diet Pepsi, back to aspartame, the company announced plans to do just that Monday. 

PepsiCo said Monday that it would reintroduce aspartame-sweetened Diet Pepsi in September, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Despite reintroducing the aspartame-sweetened beverage, PepsiCo says it will continue to sell a version sweetened with a blend of sucralose (Splenda) and acesulfame potassium (branded as “Ace K”) that began to appear on shelves last summer.

It’s unclear how long PepsiCo plans to continue selling the version of Diet Pepsi made with sucralose.

While customers had time to think about the change from aspartame prior to last year’s official switch — rumors about sweetener tests have appeared since 2012 — the change wasn’t exactly welcomed with open arms.

Specifically, PepsiCo received about 3,000 complaints from customers, and only about 300 compliments for the new formula.

News of the switch began to appear earlier this month when some local Pepsi bottlers received notice that changes would be coming to the brand’s diet sodas soon.

PepsiCo announced a second switch on Monday, this time related to the Pepsi Max beverage. The company says it will rebrand the drink as Pepsi Zero Sugar in the U.S.

PepsiCo to Reintroduce Aspartame- Sweetened Diet Pepsi [The Wall Street Journal]

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