Pepsi drops aspartame to revitalise diet drinks sales

PepsiCo has reformulated Diet Pepsi, replacing the aspartame with another artificial sweetener.

The new cans are marked with the words “now aspartame free” above the Pepsi circle logo.

According to reports in the United States, some industry executives have blamed falling sales of traditional diet sodas on unfounded concerns consumers have about aspartame. Diet Pepsi’s sales were reported as falling 5.2% last year.

“It’s the number one thing that our customers have been calling about,” said Seth Kaufman, a senior vice president of PepsiCo. The Diet Pepsi reformulation is supported with marketing, in-store sampling and discounting. When it comes to the taste, Kaufman said: “It’s not identical but the drink should still be familiar to fans of Diet Pepsi.”

Other diet sodas still using aspartame include Diet Coke, Diet Dr Pepper and Fanta Zero.