NEED TO KNOW
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PepsiCo has announced the launch of Simply NKD Doritos and Cheetos
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The new options boast classic flavors like Flamin’ Hot and Cool Ranch, without artificial colors and flavors
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“This move underscores our commitment to flavor leadership, demonstrating that our taste remains strong even without visual cues,” a PepsiCo spokesperson said
Doritos and Cheetos are stripping down with a new line-up of “NKD” options, which promise to deliver the classic snacks that fans recognize without artificial colors or flavors.
PepsiCo, the company behind the snack time classics, announced the launch of its new Simply NKD offerings in a press release on Thursday, Nov. 13, adding that the products would also be “completely colorless.”
PepsiCo
Doritos and Cheetos debut ‘NKD’ options
“Rest assured, our iconic Cheetos and Doritos remain unchanged. NKD is an additive option, not a replacement, introduced to meet consumer demand,” Rachel Ferdinando, CEO of PepsiCo Foods U.S., said in a statement.
The company insisted in the statement that the snacks’ “taste remains strong even without visual cues,” and that the move offers “more choices, same flavor” to consumers.
Cheetos Simply NKD will be available in Puffs and Flamin’ Hot, while Doritos Simply NKD snacks come in the classic Cool Ranch and Nacho Cheese flavors.
Instead of the typical vivid red that Flamin’ Hot Cheetos are known for, the Simply NKD offering will boast a more natural, pale yellow look.
Brielle Patton, D3 Studio
Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Crunchy (left) next to new Simply NKD Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Crunchy (right)
The process of revamping the chips without dyes took about eight weeks “from concept to completion,” the statement continued.
In a blind taste tests of the new snacks, consumers could not tell the difference between the original and the Simply NKD products, NBC News reported during a televised broadcast.
However, the anchors did try a blind taste test of their own and were able to correctly guess which was which, though the still called the new snacks “really good.”
Hernán Tantardini, CMO of PepsiCo Foods U.S., said the rollout is “pioneering a snacking revolution.”
Brielle Patton, D3 Studio
Doritos Nacho cheese (left) next to new Simply NKD Nacho Cheese (right)
“We are reinventing our iconic — and most famous — brands to deliver options with the bold flavors fans know and love, now reimagined without any colors or artificial flavors,” Tantardini said.
The four flavors are available for pre-order now, individually or in a taste test bundle, and will be available in grocery stores starting on Dec. 1.
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PepsiCo announced in October they would begin phasing out artificial dyes in not only products like Cheetos, but Gatorade as well. The move comes after U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.‘s vocal support of banning the additives.
Read the original article on People
