Frucor withdraws Pepsi campaign running with the bulls prize

10 February 2012

No more Bull - Frucor withdraws running with the bulls prize from Pepsi campaign in New Zealand

Statement made by Aisha Daji Punga, Pepsi Commercial Director, Frucor New Zealand

At Frucor, we set ourselves the highest possible standards. We take social responsibility seriously.

We’ve been running a promotion in New Zealand for Pepsi entitled “Bromitment” targeted at Kiwi guys. We were offering a chance to win an epic adventure, with one prize option being running with the bulls in Pamplona.

We now recognise that a proportion of our target market is offended by this type of activity, which they perceive as cruel to animals. For this we wholeheartedly apologise. Frucor and Pepsi in no way support animal cruelty.

We apologise unreservedly for our misjudgement.

As a result we have pulled the option to run with the bulls completely from the competition.

We became increasingly aware of the issue via feedback from customers and via social media over the last few days. Our initial response yesterday evening via social media did not include withdrawing from the competition – we now recognise that withdrawing is the right thing to do.

Copies of the campaign advertisements are being uploaded to Facebook, and can be viewed at: http://www.facebook.com/pepsinewzealand?sk=videos

About Frucor: www.frucor.com

Since its beginnings in the early 1960s as part of the New Zealand Apple & Pear Board, Frucor has evolved from a small local juice business to a significant international beverages company, with 820 staff and annual revenue of NZ$500 million. Frucor exports approximately NZ$250 million of beverages a year, roughly equivalent to a quarter of New Zealand’s total annual wine industry exports.

Frucor is the market leader in energy drinks in Australia and New Zealand, and the market leader in juice in New Zealand.

Frucor manufactures, markets and distributes a range of fruit juices, fruit drinks, energy drinks, waters and soft drinks, many of which are household names throughout New Zealand and Australia. Energy drink ‘V’ is also distributed throughout Europe and the UK. Frucor brands include ‘V’, Mizone, H2Go, Just Juice, Fresh-up, McCoy, Citrus Tree, Simply Squeezed, Arano, , NZ Natural, G-Force, Supplement Water, Moccona, Pepsi, Mountain Dew, 7Up and Frank.

Since 2009 Frucor has been wholly owned by leading Japanese beverage and food company Suntory Group www.suntory.com

ENDS

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