With the goal of breaking into the wellness market and helping people get rid of anxiety related to COVID-19, PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP) today unveiled a cool product, an L-theanine infused drink dubbed Driftwell. Described as a sleep aid to promote relaxation at bedtime, PepsiCo’s latest drink contains 200 grams per serving of the amino acid L-theanine and a dose of magnesium.

Driftwell’s creation began before the novel coronavirus even hit the radar, according to a CNBC report. The company launched an internal competition in 2019 to design a new product line, and Driftwell, envisioned by company employees, won the competition in January 2020. The drink has since gone through a lightning-fast development cycle. . Today’s announcement by PepsiCo says the drink will be available on e-commerce sites by December 2020 and on store shelves in early 2021.

L-theanine, the key ingredient in Driftwell, is said to promote better quality sleep and relieve feelings of anxiety or stress. But only small tests have currently shown this property, which has led the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to declare that the claims are “not sufficiently characterized”. However, L-theanine is widely used as a sleeping pill. “We have the security of clinical data to prove it works,” PepsiCo vice president of innovation, Emily Silver, told CNBC.

Driftwell comes in a blackberry-lavender flavor and is both calorie-free and sugar-free. Silver also said the post was timely given the effects of COVID-19 on stress levels in Americans, noting that the company “started this project before COVID, but especially now with all the stress we’re juggling with. a lot of things and need some sleep “.

PepsiCo managed to maintain positive cash flow through the pandemic despite declining sales.