Pepsi Bottling Group has signed an agreement with CytoSport Inc. to distribute Muscle Milk, a protein-enhanced functional beverage.
The agreement will give Pepsi Bottling a license to distribute the ready-to-drink line of Muscle Milk and Muscle Milk Light in its territories in the U.S. and Canada. The agreement is effective immediately, so Pepsi Bottling will begin distribution in the U.S. in January. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Strengthening and diversifying the PBG product portfolio is one of our top priorities,” said PBG North America President Rob King. “By teaming up with CytoSport, we are entering a new beverage segment with attractive long-term growth prospects. Muscle Milk has established itself as one of the leading functional nutrition beverage brands, and adding it to our portfolio will enable us to capitalize on the opportunities in this exciting category.”
“The Pepsi Bottling Group’s robust go-to-market system is unsurpassed in the beverage industry,” said CytoSport President Greg Pickett. “By working with PBG, we’ll be able to greatly extend the reach of the Muscle Milk brand and put our products in the hands of more consumers than ever before. This is a beverage category with tremendous growth potential, and this agreement further enhances CytoSport’s leading position in the category.”
CytoSport, the maker of Muscle Milk, is the largest sport nutrition protein beverage company in the U.S., offering a complete line of protein-enhanced powders, shakes and bars.