CytoSport
Product type | Protein drink Other protein supplement products |
---|---|
Owner | PepsiCo (via Gatorade) |
Country | United States |
Introduced | 1998 |
Previous owners | Hormel Foods |
Website | musclemilk.com |
CytoSport is an American manufacturer of sports-oriented
History
CytoSport was founded in 1998 by the father/son team of Greg and Mike Pickett. It produces its powder products and pre-blends of ready-to-drink products at a 150,000-square-foot (14,000 m2) manufacturing facility.[1]
Its products are endorsed by running back Adrian Peterson and by college swimming coach Mike Bottom.[1]
In February 2019, Hormel announced it was [5] selling the CytoSport business to PepsiCo, Inc. for a purchase price of $465 million. The transaction included the Muscle Milk and Evolve sports nutrition brands and was completed in April 2019.
Controversy
A June 2010 investigation by Consumer Reports, a US consumer advocacy magazine, found that two of Cytosport's Muscle Milk products contained levels of heavy metals near or exceeding levels proposed by the United States Pharmacopeia (USP). Muscle Milk's Chocolate powder had four heavy metals — cadmium, lead, arsenic, and mercury — and three of these metals were found to be at the highest levels of all the health drinks tested. Average cadmium levels of 5.6 µg in three daily servings exceeded the USP limit of 5 µg per day, and the average lead level of 13.5 µg also topped the USP limit of 10 µg per day. The average arsenic level of 12.2 µg was near the USP limit of 15 µg per day. Muscle Milk's Vanilla Crème powder had 12.2 µg of lead in three daily servings, exceeding the lead limits, and 11.2 µg of arsenic.[6] In response, CytoSport said, "Importantly, the tests underscored the fact that Muscle Milk Chocolate liquid shakes, by far and away our company's most popular consumer form of Muscle Milk, did not exceed the proposed maximum levels of any heavy metals tested, even when used three times per day."[7][8] CytoSport's founder, Greg Pickett, also indicated that NSF International released a conclusion that its own test results 'do not reflect the concentrations stated in the Consumer Reports article.'"[7] In turn, Consumer Reports provided their rebuttal, defending their statements.[9]
On June 8, 2009, it was reported that The National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Council of
On May 6, 2009, in
Muscle Milk Pickett Racing
Muscle Milk owner and founder, Greg Pickett, has also been involved in a championship winning North American sports car racing team. Founded in 2007, Pickett's team has competed in the
Drivers' and Teams' Championship. The team officially closed operations on May 16, 2014, with Greg Pickett focusing his attention back on the expansion of his Muscle Milk brand.References
- ^ a b "Behind Our Product". cytosport.com. CytoSport, Inc.
- Contra Costa Times. Bay Area News Group. Archived from the originalon February 6, 2010. Retrieved August 10, 2018 – via tsgconsumer.com.
- ^ "Cytosport Inc.: Flexing Some Muscle". Beverage World. 2009-03-05. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
- ^ Mattioli, Dana; Dai, Shasha; Bunge, Jacob (July 1, 2014). "Hormel to Acquire Maker of Muscle Milk". The Wall Street Journal. p. B3.
- Hormel.
- Consumers Union. June 1, 2010. Retrieved June 29, 2010.
JUL 2010 Cover
- ^ a b "Press Release". cytosport.com (Press release). CytoSport, Inc. May 30, 2010. Retrieved June 29, 2010.
- ^ Pickett, Greg. "CytoSport's Response to July 2010 Consumer Reports Article, 'Alert: Protein Drinks'" (Press release). Cytosport. Retrieved August 10, 2018 – via Dokumen.tips.
- ^ Rock, Andrea; Rangan, Urvashi (June 4, 2010). "Maker of protein drinks responds to CU's investigation". ConsumerReports.org. Consumers Union. Retrieved August 10, 2018.
- ^ "NAD Refers CytoSport Ads to FTC". Natural Products Insider. Archived from the original on 2009-06-29.
- ^ "CytoSport Secures Preliminary Court-Ordered Injunction of Muscle Power Due to Infringement of Muscle Milk Trademark". BevNET.com. May 7, 2009.