Pure Leaf Iced Tea™ Launches "For the Love of Leaves" Campaign And Partners With Gail Simmons To Serve Kentucky Derby Goers Iced Tea-Infused Recipes

PURCHASE, N.Y., May 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Pure Leaf Iced Tea™, a product of the Pepsi Lipton Tea Partnership, is reviving its classic taste with a new "For the Love of Leaves" campaign this summer. Gail Simmons, of Bravo's "Top Chef" and Food & Wine magazine, will also join Pure Leaf at the Kentucky Derby to unveil refreshing tea-infused recipes.  

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120502/CG99533)

"We're reintroducing Pure Leaf's fresh brewed taste with a new look that iced tea drinkers will be proud to serve to both their families and guests," says Mary Barnard, "Our flavors, which are made from hand-selected tea from around the world, also pair wonderfully with food and make great additions to refreshing summer drink recipes."

Kentucky Derby-Inspired Recipes

Gail Simmons tapped Pure Leaf's fresh-brewed taste to create delicious Derby-themed recipes, perfect for the summertime entertaining season. Fans can find the recipes at www.facebook.com/PureLeaf. Simmons will also help announce the "Real Brewed Taste Challenge" by inviting consumers to put Pure Leaf to a taste test against fresh-from-the-kettle tea. Special offers will make it easy to make the comparison and one lucky winner will have the chance to win a trip for two to New York for a Pure Leaf Culinary Experience that includes a one-on-one event with Gail Simmons.

"We're thrilled to be able to share the taste of Pure Leaf as part of the Kentucky Derby, an extravagant and traditional American sporting event," said Eric Allen, Brand Manager, Pure Leaf. "Just in time for the iced tea-sipping season, Pure Leaf is proud to partner with Gail Simmons to share fun ways to enjoy the fresh brewed taste of Pure Leaf this summer."

New PET Packaging

Pure Leaf is proud to be Rainforest Alliance Certified™ for sourcing its tea sustainably. The brand will expand on this pride by introducing new environmentally-friendly packaging. The new square-shaped bottles are made of PET plastic, are lightweight and allow for a high pallet efficiency, which equates to more bottles, lighter loads and less fuel used in transport. Pure Leaf is now available in 18.5-ounce single-serve bottles (suggested retail price of $1.69-$1.79) and a new 59-oz. multi-serve carafe (suggested retail price of $2.49-$2.69).

For the Love of Leaves Campaign

The "For the Love of Leaves" campaign, developed to capture the growth of the premium ready-to-drink iced tea category, was inspired by Pure Leaf's commitment to sourcing the freshest hand-selected tea from around the world. The digital campaign will begin running nationally on May 1, while new radio spots and out-of-home advertising will debut in select markets.

Pure Leaf is available in Unsweetened Iced Tea, Sweetened Iced Tea, Extra Sweet Iced Tea, Iced Tea with Raspberry, Iced Tea with Lemon (diet and regular), Iced Tea with Peach (diet and regular) and Green Tea with Honey. For more information, visit www.facebook.com/PureLeaf.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo is a global food and beverage leader with net revenues of more than $65 billion and a product portfolio that includes 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in annual retail sales. Our main businesses – Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay and Pepsi-Cola – make hundreds of enjoyable foods and beverages that are loved throughout the world. PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment by conserving energy and water and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com. 

About Unilever North America

Unilever is one of the world's leading suppliers of fast moving consumer goods with strong operations in more than 100 countries and sales in 180. With products that are used over two billion times a day around the world, we work to create a better future every day and help people feel good, look good and get more out of life with brands and services that are good for them and good for others. In the United States and Canada the portfolio includes brand icons such as: Axe, Becel, Ben & Jerry's, Bertolli, Breyers, Caress, Consort For Men, Country Crock, Degree, Dove personal care products, fds, Good Humor, Hellmann's, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!, Just for Me!, Klondike, Knorr, Lever 2000, Lipton, Motions, Nexxus, Noxzema, Pond's, Popsicle, Promise, Q-Tips, Ragu, Simple, Skippy, Slim-Fast, Soft & Beautiful, St. Ives, Suave, tcb, TIGI, TRESemme, Vaseline and Wish-Bone. All of the preceding brand names are registered trademarks of the Unilever Group of Companies. Dedicated to serving consumers and the communities where we live, work and play, Unilever employs more than 13,000 people across North America–generating over $9 billion in sales in 2011. For more information, visit www.unileverusa.com or www.unilever.ca.

SOURCE Pure Leaf Iced Tea