The new range of drinks lean heavily towards a sugar-free positioning.
Matcha green tea brand Vivid has announced plans to launch a range of “mental energy drinks” and will remove all sugar from its existing products.
The new range, itself free from sugar or sweeteners, will be available in original, lemon and elderflower flavours. Its three new flavours will replace the original sweetened range, which has gained a following among students and millennials, the brand said.
The accompanying reformulation of the rest of Vivid’s portfolio is thought to be one of the earliest direct responses to the implementation of a sugar tax, which the UK government announced in March.
Vivid is made with the superfood matcha, which is high in natural caffeine and L-theanine to increase mental alertness, provide an energy boost and evoke a calm and settled mental state. Matcha is made with pure, high-grade green tea leaves that have been picked and ground into a fine powder in Japan, and has been used for thousands of years by Buddhist monks to aid meditation, Vivid said.
The brand’s founder, James Shillcock, said: “We are axing our sweetened range, a move planned long before the sugar tax came in, because we are committed to delivering a product with unrivalled positive effects on cognitive performance, and that means no sugar. The big players will be reformulating or lobbying to fight sugar tax legislation for years, but the science is clear on how much sugar impacts on brain performance over time – going completely sugar-free will not only help Vivid be more effective as a drink to focus the mind, it will also be leading the trend for zero sugar products on the go.”
The new drinks, which have just 5 calories in each pack, will be available from today with a recommended retail price of £1.89 each.
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