That’s what I said when I heard there was a raw version of Pepsi hitting the streets. How could they possibly take something made of chemicals and convert it to all natural ingredients? On the other hand, I guess they’ve converted plenty of natural foods into chemical flavors, why not go the other direction? I am pleased. I never thought “natural” and “soda” would go together. Perhaps this is a response to the Coke Plus (the chemical soda containing vitamins). We’ll see if Coca-Cola responds to Pepsi Raw by making a Coke Health Shake or something. Such cute competitors they are. But hey, if they’re competing for the healthiest soft drink, I’m in full support. And if this is a hit, just imagine how the energy drink trend could shift. Like Michael Pollan says: Don’t Eat Anything That Doesn’t Rot. Hooray for natural ingredients!

Here are the ingredients in Pepsi Raw:

• apple extract
• plain caramel colouring
• coffee leaf
• tartaric acid from grapes
• gum arabic from acacia trees
• cane sugar
• sparkling water

The word on the street is “It is paler in colour and less fizzy than other cola brands.” Is the soda really made of “raw” ingredients? Nothing heated over 118 degrees? I doubt it. But I sure as heckfire want to try it. I guess it’s currently only being sold in the UK. I really hope it makes it’s way over to the US. It could do a world of good over here where much of the country survives on soda and highly processed foods. This would be a great asset to the rising health trend. Apparently they haven’t made a new Pepsi drink in a decade, so they better be pretty confident that this is a good idea.