A wide array of Odwalla juices and smoothies in a grocery store in Alameda, California. | Photo: Sheila Fitzgerald/Shutterstock
Plus, the House of Representatives voted to extend the PPP deadline, and more news to start your day
The end of Odwalla, staple of airports and bodegas everywhere
Pour one Mango Tango smoothie out for Odwalla. Coca-Cola, the juice company’s parent company since 2001, announced that it’s discontinuing the brand, the Wall Street Journal reports. Stores will stop receiving Odwalla shipments by the end of July, and any unsold inventory will be picked up through August, a company spokesperson told the Journal.
Odwalla, known for its “premium” refrigerated juices and smoothies with a healthy sheen, has been around since 1980. Its products seemed to be everywhere in the aughts, buoyed by a growing interest in wellness and “natural” diets. But the smoothie category has declined, according to the spokesperson, and Coca-Cola has been evaluating the brand’s performance for several years. “[W]e couldn’t make it work, we couldn’t figure out the cost-effectiveness of it,” the spokesperson told the Journal.
Odwalla will be joining other faltering brands and products — from restaurant menu items to less popular chip flavors — axed by their parent companies during the coronavirus pandemic, as consumer-oriented businesses seek to save money and double down on their most profitable offerings.
And in other news…
- The House of Representatives has voted to extend the deadline — from June 30 to August 8 — for small businesses to apply for forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans. The bill, which was already approved by the Senate, now goes to the president for his signature. [CNBC]
- As coronavirus cases continue to rise across the U.S., even McDonald’s has been spooked into delaying reopening. The fast-food giant is pausing all further dining room reopenings for the next three weeks. [NRN]
- NPC International — the largest franchisee in the U.S., with more than 1,600 Pizza Hut and Wendy’s restaurants — has filed for bankruptcy, citing Pizza Hut in particular as a financial weakness. [Business Insider]
- Staying very much in character, Taco Bell’s latest nationwide offering is a grilled cheese burrito with cheese on the inside and the outside. [PR Newswire]
- LaCroix has two new seltzer flavors, coconut cola and Cubana mojito. Perfect for sipping at home, closing your eyes, and wishing desperately you could go anywhere sandy and sunny. [Delish]
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