Reflecting the evolving needs of today's consumer and the increased desire for more good- and better-for-you choices on-the-go, PepsiCo today announced the launch of a new, state-of-the-art food and beverage vending initiative called "Hello Goodness." Debuting today at the Beverage Digest Future Smarts Conference in New York City, the vending unit offers good- and better-for-you product choices from the company's diverse and highly complementary food and beverage portfolio. PepsiCo will place several thousand units throughout the U.S. in 2016 in a variety of locations, including select healthcare, recreational, transportation, governmental, workplace and educational facilities.

PepsiCo's state-of-the-art food and beverage vending initiative called

The Hello Goodness vending machine -- which will also be available in a beverage-only version -- features a thoughtfully chosen selection of PepsiCo products such as such as Naked Juice, Smartfood Delight popcorn, Lay's Oven Baked potato chips, Quaker Real Medleys bars, Pure Leaf iced tea, Propel Electrolyte Water, Tropicana Pure Premium and Sabra Ready-to-Eat Hummus cups. The Hello Goodness vending machine also goes beyond traditional vending machines in the market and:

• Features a digital point-of-sale touch screen with product nutritional information

• Suggests food and beverage pairing ideas for different eating occasions throughout the day

• Is smart equipment, giving PepsiCo real-time consumer preference insights to further inform future offerings

• Contains dual climate-control shelving, allowing both perishable and non-perishable items to be easily vended together at the correct temperature

• Allows for cashless and digital vending

"Consumers want more choice when it comes to what they eat and drink on-the-go and we're providing the choices they want," said Kirk Tanner, chief operating officer, PepsiCo North America Beverages. "For years, PepsiCo has been transforming its portfolio to offer more and better food and beverages. We're continuing this journey with our new Hello Goodness vending initiative, which brings together the power of our brands and our expertise in design, category management and equipment innovation expertise."