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It sounded like a good business move for Beyoncé — a $50 million deal with Pepsi. But now health advocates are urging the singer to walk away from the partnership.
Beyoncé has been a Pepsi spokesperson since 2002 when she replaced Britney Spears as the face of the soft drink brand. But when PepsiCo re-upped with the superstar for the 10th year, they sweetened the package. As we recently reported, under the new deal with Pepsi, Beyonce will be a “brand ambassador” for Pepsi and will not only appear in a new set of ads but Pepsi will also be supporting the promotion of Bey’s next album and sponsor her upcoming world tour next year. Her face is even on limited edition cans, which will be available starting in Europe in March.
Wait a minute, says the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). The organization says that the beverage company is “promoting an unhealthy drink in the midst of current health issues” and that Beyoncé should distance herself from such a company. The connection, says CSPI, is counter to her image of a healthy lifestyle. The organization has even gone as far as to issue a letter to Beyoncé in which they wrote: “Your image is one of success, health, talent, fitness and glamour. But by lending your name and image to PepsiCo, you are associating those positive attributes with a product that is quite literally sickening Americans,” reports EURWeb.
But CSPI has come up with a compromise: They suggest that “Beyoncé should consider donating her take to hospitals, diabetes organizations or other groups,” according to the website.
Since Beyoncé has been with Pepsi for a decade already, one wonders why the health group waited this long to criticize the partnership. One reason the CSPI could acting now is that recent reports say that PepsiCo added yet another artificial sweetener to its Diet Pepsi brand. The addition of acesulfame potassium, which joins the existing sweetener aspartame, will boost the longevity of the drink’s taste.
Should Beyoncé back out of the deal?
