Snack Chat

Tostitos and the USO Are Bringing College Football to Troops Overseas, Again!

Today, you may have seen that the Tostitos brand announced it’s partnering again with the USO to bring college football to troops stationed overseas.  Legendary college football coaches and players will play with active members of the military in a game we’re calling the "Connect to Home Bowl." The game will be held at an undisclosed military base in the Persian Gulf while college football bowl games are taking place back in the United States. 

I had the opportunity of a lifetime last year to attend the first game Frito-Lay and the USO hosted in Iraq, and will be going back again with this year’s team.  (That's me on the left during last year's trip.) The experience and opportunity was awe-inspiring, and frankly I can’t wait to join again.  I came away with so many vivid memories... 

• We visited multiple military bases, and I was moved by the time the soldiers, players and coaches spent together. You could feel the soldiers’ excitement to share in a moment that reminded them of home –- they seemed so appreciative of the journey the team made.
• The coaches and players were so incredibly giving.  The trip was long; the schedule was hectic; and yet every time we were with the soldiers, both the players and coaches were engaged and enthusiastic.  Sharing favorite football moments and even doing a little football “trash talking” made for a special, and even transporting, experience for both players and soldiers.
• The game!  Everyone played all-out and the competition was real.  It truly had a college game feel … tailgaters, cheerleaders, a band and announcers.  Even a few foam fingers!!!

I can’t put into words the pride I feel working for this company when we launch programs as great as the "Connect to Home Bowl."  But more important, it’s what the troops think and feel.  Staff Sergeant Cecil Graham, who played in last year’s game, was quoted in the Associated Press and pretty much summed it up when he said:

“We have to keep going over here.  A lot of people don't know what we go through over here.  A lot of people have their own assumptions.  But like Coach Switzer and Tony [Casillas] said, to know that people at home have our back, it's a blessing.  It's unforgettable.”

I know this year’s game will be equally incredible.  Thanks in advance to the soldiers, players and coaches for allowing me to be part of this.  I look forward to sharing updates and stories from this year’s “Connect to Home Bowl" with you here on Snack Chat. You'll also be able to watch highlights from the game during the 2011 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl halftime show from its ESPN broadcast and via www.facebook.com/Tostitos. So, stay tuned!

- Aurora 

Holiday Favorites Made With Frito-Lay Snacks

Alexia’s recent post about serving our new Tostitos Artisan Recipes tortilla chips (which are fabulous, by the way) at holiday gatherings got me thinking about one of my family’s own holiday get-together traditions – Fritos and benedictine. 

Unless you’re from Kentucky, like my family, there’s a good chance you haven’t heard of benedictine. It’s a spread/dip made with cucumber and cream cheese, invented by Jennie Carter Benedict, who served it at a restaurant she ran in Louisville around the early 1900s. She used it as a spread for tea sandwiches, but it’s since become popular as a dip for crackers and veggies – or in the case of my family, as a dip for Fritos (and I bet it’s great with Stacy’s Pita Chips, too!).

There are a lot of variations of the recipe online, but this one is closest to the recipe my family uses – although we leave out the mayo. My grandmother served Fritos and benedictine without fail at every holiday get-together when I was growing up. Everyone in our extended family – especially my brother, cousins and me – would swarm around it the moment she brought it out from the kitchen. Now, my aunt makes it when the whole family gets together on Christmas Eve. My cousins’ children love it just as much as we did when we were kids, and it’s fun to see that this simple yet delicious family tradition 
has been passed on to a third generation.  

Lately, I’ve been hearing around the office a lot about other favorite holiday recipes whose ingredients include Frito-Lay snacks – from Fritos Cornbread Stuffing to Pretzel Wreaths made with Rold Gold. If you have a recipe to share, I’d love to hear about it!

- Katherine

Frito-Lay and PepsiCo Help Bring Food and Essentials to Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C. -- our nation’s capitol. People flock to D.C. to experience the history, visit the monuments and see democracy in action. However, for 2,000 PepsiCo associates, the Washington D.C. Metro area is simply home.

These associates see first-hand how the district is struggling with the economic downturn. Its unemployment and poverty rates are higher than the national averages. Northeast D.C.’s Ward 5 has a 9.2% unemployment rate, and more than 20% of its residents live below the poverty line.

So PepsiCo associates decided to help: Led by Frito-Lay’s Mid-Atlantic metro market director Al Ferguson, our associates partnered with Feed The Children’s Americans Feeding Americans Caravan and friends at Giant Food of Landover, Md., to bring food and essentials to their neighbors in Ward 5.

Yesterday, more than 250 volunteers from Frito-Lay, Pepsi and PepsiCo Warehouse (Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade) gathered at an abandoned grocery store to prepare for the distribution. Neighbors began lining up at 6 a.m., and by the time the doors opened at 9 a.m., there was a line wrapped around the shopping center. By 3 p.m., 3,200 families had received a 25-pound box of food; a 10-pound box of essentials; a box of Avon products; PepsiCo products including Frito-Lay's Baked! line of snacks, SunChips multigrain snacks, Rold Gold pretzels, Quaker Oatmeal, Quaker Chewy Chocolate Chip granola bars, Tropicana orange juice, Propel Fit water, and Sierra Mist Natural; and fresh fruit all packed in a reusable shopping bag provided by Giant Food.

This is PepsiCo’s third event this year with Feed The Children’s Americans Feeding Americans Caravan. We helped 4,000 families in Detroit this June, nearly 3,000 families in Atlanta in October, and now 3,200 families in Washington, D.C. Together, about 10,000 families have been fed through the efforts of more than 600 PepsiCo volunteers across the country.

- Deanna

Frito-Lay Participates in Governors' Global Climate Summit 3

Frito-Lay this week was fortunate to be part of the Governors’ Global Climate Summit 3 at the University of California – Davis, which brought together experts and leaders from around the world to collaborate and share best practices and innovations in environmental solutions. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and several other governors hosted the event, in partnership with the United Nations. With more than 1,500 attendees from more than 80 states, provinces and countries, it was one of the largest gatherings of leaders from around the world focused on climate solutions.

Our president and CEO, Al Carey, was part of a panel of experts who talked about the importance of business and government partnerships in making environmental progress. He noted that Frito-Lay's governmental partnerships helped make projects such as the co-generation system at our Killingly, Conn., site, the solar field at our Modesto, Calif. site and our new all-electric route trucks possible. 

To learn more, check out this brief video of an interview Al conducted at the event with Hub Culture.

- Katherine

Holiday Entertaining Gets a Helping Hand from Tostitos

I absolutely love the holidays -– the decorations, the festive music and the fact that people always seem to be in a cheerful mood this time of year. At the same time, for me, the holidays can be pretty stressful. One of the biggest reasons is all the entertaining that takes place. I love having guests over, but like many, I’m not a natural hostess and often struggle to come up with ideas on what to serve. 

Thankfully, this holiday season, I’m getting some help from one of my favorite Frito-Lay brands, Tostitos, which just introduced a new product called Tostitos Artisan Recipes that I think is perfect for holiday entertaining (or just about any eating occasion, including late-night snacking -- something I am pretty good at!).

New Tostitos Artisan Recipes are available in two flavors -- Roasted Garlic & Black Bean and Fire-Roasted Chipotle. After trying them both, I can honestly say they are equally delicious. Both are made with 100 percent natural ingredients, like real black beans, garlic and chipotle peppers. What’s especially cool is that the ingredients are actually baked into the chips, instead of applied on top. That means you can see the ingredients in each and every chip, and of course, taste them too. With all that flavor, they're a pretty good solution when you're low on dip. I like to eat Artisan Recipes straight from the bag (no dip required). Best of all, each serving of Artisan Recipes gives you eight grams of whole grains. 

I’m pretty sure these new Tostitos Artisan Recipes will be a huge crowd pleaser, which means I'll be worrying less and entertaining more this holiday season! Try them for yourself, and let us know what you think.

- Alexia