Crayons, Inc. Introduces Only All-Natural Sports Drinks For Youth

14/03/08 Announcing the launch of the only all-natural sports drink for youth at the largest natural foods show, Natural Products Expo West, Crayons Inc’s CEO said they’re filling an important void in the fast-growing functional beverage market for kids. Crayons, Inc. owns the familiar Crayons logo in food and beverage in 27 countries.
 
“There are 58 million kids, including my own, who are playing sports and have special hydration needs that nobody’s been addressing.  As a parent, I’m thrilled to finally have a healthy sports drink option.  My children stay hydrated because Crayons taste great. My wife and I love that the drinks are full of nutrition, with no high-fructose corn syrup,” said Ron Lloyd, Crayons’ CEO.  Crayons’ co-founder Duncan Seay adds, “It is great to see my vision of providing healthier drink options specifically formulated for kids materialize with these new sports drinks.”
 
Lloyd also announced a new sales & marketing deal with The Touch Agency – a team of sales/marketing professionals who have been key to the growth of companies such as Gatorade, Silk and Emer’gen-C.  Lloyd said the agreement is another example of the attractiveness of the brand and a reason Crayons, Inc. is a company to watch.
 
Touch Agency managing partner Robert Gay says, "As our business has grown, we have become increasingly selective in the process of adding brand partners. This product wins on taste, wins on brand name, wins on having a clean ingredient deck and is a big winner for retailers. This is more than a product. Crayons is a brand platform that we want to build on.”
 
Electrolytes for replenishment and organic fuel for energy keep kids in the game

Key features of Crayons’ new sports drinks include low amounts of organic evaporated cane juice and a moderate amount of sea salt  – plus intentional levels of vitamins, electrolytes and minerals – all carefully selected to specifically address the hydration and nutritional needs for active kids.  Wrapped in the iconic Crayons logo with kid-friendly colors, each easy-to-hold 8-ounce can contains only 50 calories. “The 80 million parents whose kids play sports should know that studies show sports drinks are better than water at re-hydrating kids because they’re more likely to drink the required amount if there’s a moderate amount of sodium and some fruit flavor,” instructs Brooke de Lench, founder of MomsTeam.com a leading website focused on youth sports, health and safety.  de Lench said over 31 deaths due to youth sports dehydration were reported between 1999 and 2007.
 
Crayons, Inc. is a proud sponsor of MomsTeam.com, and will be supporting their work in raising public awareness about hydration and youth sports.  Together, de Lench and Crayons have created a downloadable “Healthy Hydration Guide for Parents” available at www.drinkcrayons.com .
 
Crayons sports drinks come in three flavors: Playoff Punch, Leaping Lemon-Lime and Breakaway Berry. The all-natural sports drinks contain NO JUNK - no high-fructose corn syrup, no dyes, no artificial sweeteners, and no preservatives.  They will be available late April at grocery, natural, and specialty stores nationwide with a suggested retail price of $1.49.
 
The sports drinks are Crayons, Inc.’s second beverage.  At Expo West last year the company launched an all-natural line of juice drinks that contain healthy amounts of fiber, vitamins and minerals, and a proprietary blend of natural ingredients called SugarGuard, which lowers the overall amount of sugar in each Crayons fruit juice drinks and helps moderate sugar’s absorption rate, thus reducing sugar spikes in kids. 
 
Compared to other juice drinks, Crayons juices contain 30% less sugar (no HFCS) and 25% fewer calories – only 90 calories per 8 oz. serving. The five Crayons all-natural fruit juice flavors are: Outrageous Orange Mango, Tickled Pink Lemonade, Wild Watermelon & Berries, Redder Than Ever Fruit Punch and Kiwi Strawberry.