Type | Sports drink, drink mix, energy drink |
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Manufacturer | Prime Hydration, LLC |
Distributor | Congo Brands |
Country of origin |
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Introduced | January 4, 2022 |
Website | US Website UK Website |
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Music Career Studio Albums EPs Boxing Career Films and Television Ventures | ||
Prime (stylized as PRIME) is a range of sports drinks, drink mixes, and energy drinks created and marketed by Prime Hydration, LLC. The range is promoted and founded by YouTubers and internet personalities Logan Paul and KSI . The announcement and the release of the product in 2017 was followed by a social media hype associated with these social media personalities, who have tens of millions of followers combined. It was also promoted through mainstream sports sponsorship deals.
Prime Hydration produces a variety of energy drinks, sports drinks, and drink mixes containing varying levels of caffeine, electrolytes, and added micronutrients. Prime Energy drinks have generated controversy due to their marketing campaign, which has been criticized for targeting children and adolescents, in conjunction with their high concentration of caffeine. Several countries, jurisdictions, and primary and secondary schools have banned or restricted the drink due to its caffeine content exceeding legal limits, or otherwise being deemed unsafe for children.
Prime Hydration, LLC is affiliated with Congo Brands, co-owned by American businessmen Max Clemons and Trey Steiger. [1] In the United Kingdom, where the product was launched in June 2022, [2] [3] it was originally shipped from the United States, and is now manufactured by Refresco. [4]
The Prime labeling is used on energy drinks, sports drinks, and drink mixes. [5] The sports drinks, described by the manufacturer as "hydration drinks", [6] are made up of 10 percent coconut water and contain electrolytes, B vitamins and BCAAs. [7] The manufacturers state that this version of the product contains no added sugar, is caffeine-free, and has around 20 calories per bottle. [7] It is sweetened with acesulfame potassium and sucralose, like many other sugar-free drinks. [8]
Prime Hydration flavors are Strawberry Banana, Blue Raspberry, Cherry Freeze, [9] Glowberry (Sour Apple Berry), [10] Grape, Ice Pop (Cherry, Blue Raspberry, Lime), Lemonade, Lemon Lime, Meta [ disambiguation needed ] Moon (Candyfruit), Orange, Strawberry Watermelon, Tropical Punch, [7] and a discontinued limited-edition UK-exclusive "KSI" flavor, which is orange and mango flavored. [11] The energy drink, which was launched in 2023, [12] contains 200 mg of caffeine. Prime Energy shares several flavors with its sports drink counterpart. Prime Energy flavors include Blue Raspberry, Ice Pop, [13] Lemon Lime, Orange Mango, Strawberry Watermelon, Original and Tropical Punch. The flavors of Prime Hydration+ Sticks are Cherry Freeze, Glowberry, Strawberry Watermelon and Strawberry Banana, Lemonade, Ice Pop, Blue Raspberry, Tropical Punch, Lemon Lime and Meta Moon. There have been some special Prime Hydration flavors, like Ice Pop Fly, a collaboration with the Dodgers baseball team, [14] and Bayern, a collaboration with FC Bayern Munich. [15] In November 2023, two golden Lemonade Prime bottles were on display in London and New York and were worth $500,000 each. [16] There are other Limited Edition bottles such as the Ice Pop Prime Card Misfits bottles, Lemonade Venice Beach and Lemonade Piñata Colada [17]
On January 4, 2022, YouTubers KSI and Logan Paul , [18] with collectively more than 40 million YouTube subscribers and millions of followers on other platforms, [19] [20] announced on a live Instagram feed that they had founded a new drinks company known as Prime Hydration. [21] Their involvement led to a social media hype around the product, [8] [20] which was followed by demand from school-age children, particularly teenage boys. [22] [23] [19] According to the Evening Standard , the surge in demand caused high prices among online resellers, [24] including an eBay listing offering twelve bottles for £400. [25] Sky News reported that the release of the drink sparked "chaotic scenes" at Asda [4] and Aldi supermarkets in the United Kingdom. [26] [27] A Financial Times article conveyed a London teacher's account of how children who only possessed used Prime bottles, filled with water, were "catapulted to higher status among their peers". [18]
Mary McCarthy of The Independent , commenting on the way Prime was being marketed through social media, suggested that KSI and Logan Paul had undue influence on the product's main market—young boys—and that "cold, calculating big business" was working with individuals whose attitude towards women was questionable, and whose output was often misogynistic, aimed at boys "waiting to be told what to think". [28]
Gordon Ramsay reviewed the drink on Heart radio, describing it as "like swallowing perfume", and giving it 0/10. [29] Boxer Chris Eubank Jr also tried the drink saying "It's very sweet, I mean it says it's naturally flavoured. It doesn't taste bad, but it's not a natural flavour of drink". [30]
Prime Energy has been banned in New Zealand. [31] The drink has also been banned in schools in many countries, including some in Australia, Canada, [32] South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. [33]
Several Australian schools have instituted bans on Prime energy drinks, as a health risk to students due to its high caffeine levels. ABC News noted that the Food Standards Australia New Zealand legal limit for caffeine was 32 mg per 100 ml, while Prime contains around 56 mg per 100 ml. A sports dietician, who described the drink as an "addictive substance" went on to state that "giving a dose of caffeine to young children who've got … developing cognitive function is not a wise idea". ABC noted that the drink, on sale in Woolworths stores, carried a disclaimer stating that the drink "is not suitable for children under the age of 15, pregnant or breastfeeding women, and should only be used under medical or dietetic supervision". [34]
In March 2023, several schools in Queensland, Victoria [35] and Western Australia banned the drink. [36] In April, several New South Wales schools followed. [37]
In April 2023, a store in Perth controversially allowed the sale of PRIME Energy to minors. [38]
On November 30, 2023, the Federal Sanitary Inspection of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina prohibited the import of 1,596 pieces of Prime Ice Pop Hydration due to laboratory tests showing that some specific ingredients could have a harmful effect on human health. [39]
On July 12, 2023, Health Canada issued a recall on various caffeinated and non-bilingual labeled drinks, including Prime. [40] This decision came after many complaints of the high volume of caffeine in the product, which exceeds the maximum 180mg allowed in Canada. Furthermore, food products sold in Canada must have bilingual (English and French) packaging as both languages are official languages in Canada. [41]
In Denmark, some retailers had begun parallel importing Prime beverages before an official launch of the product in the country. [42] This led to newsbreaks as the parallel imported goods were not compliant with Danish regulations, due to the energy drink's caffeine concentration exceeded the approved limit. The Danish Veterinary and Food Administration announced that it advised five retailers to pull the parallel imported product. [43]
In June 2023, Prime launched officially in the country, kicking off in Salling Group supermarkets and Circle K convenience stores. [44] For the product to be compliant and distributed in the country, the Prime Hydration product had been modified to not contain vitamin A, and the Prime Energy drinks were not subject to sale, as they contained the excessive amounts of caffeine. [45]
After some time the hype died out, and in March 2024 retailers started to give away the drink for free, to try and clear out their inventory [46]
On August 8, 2023, the Netherlands banned the sale of Prime due to its high caffeine content. [47]
In New Zealand, it is illegal to sell the Prime Energy drink as it contains 579 mg of caffeine per litre, which is above the legal limit of 320 mg. Police Minister Ginny Andersen warned that businesses selling the product can face fines up to $100,000 NZD.
The drink was previously available on retail website Trade Me, but listings were removed following enquiries by media company Stuff. [31]
On November 13, 2023, the Inspection by the Administration of Food Safety, Veterinary Medicine and Plant Protection of the Republic of Slovenia banned the sale of Prime energy drinks in Slovenia as they contain L-theanine, which is not allowed in non-alcoholic beverages. Prime Hydration may be freely sold. [48]
In South Africa, The National Association of School Governing Bodies has called for the complete ban of Prime Hydration in schools and urging the government to investigate the drink to evaluate if it's responsible for behavioral changes in children. [49]
School Governing Bodies (SGB) lawfully have the power to determine what pupils are allowed to bring into schools.
— Department of Education Head Of Communications, Elijah Mhlanga
Across South Africa, schools have begun banning the drink due to health concerns over the high caffeine content. [50]
On July 9, 2023, Senator Chuck Schumer urged the US Food and Drug Administration to investigate Prime due to its high caffeine content, and that it uses unclear marketing that targets young people which leads to their parents purchasing a "cauldron of caffeine" for them. [51] [52]
Prime was the sponsor for Timmy Hill's number 13 MBM Motorsports car for one race in the NASCAR Xfinity Series. [53] In their official statement they said it meant they have "access to talent and footballers which they do leverage in some of their marketing". [20]
In July 2022, Premier League club Arsenal announced a joint marketing agreement with the company, with Prime becoming the official sports drink supplier for the club. [54] [55] [56] In 2023, KSI had plans to make an Arsenal-flavored bottle if they were to win the Premier League. [57] However, after a loss to Nottingham Forest, which led to rivals Manchester City winning the Premier League, the flavor was shelved and plans were cancelled. [58]
In January 2023, the Ultimate Fighting Championship announced a joint marketing agreement with the company, with Prime becoming the official sports drink supplier for the mixed martial arts promotion company. [59] [60] Prime signed several athletes to sponsorships, including Alex Volkanovski, Israel Adesanya, Patrick Mahomes, Alisha Lehmann, and Erling Haaland. [61] [62] In February 2023, Prime was promoted in a Super Bowl LVII commercial. [63]
In July 2023, FC Barcelona signed a sponsorship agreement with Prime. [64]
In August 2023, FC Bayern Munich signed a sponsorship agreement with Prime. [65]
In November 2023, Toronto Maple Leafs player Auston Matthews signed a sponsorship agreement with Prime. [66]
In February 2024, NASCAR champion and Hendrick Motorsports driver Kyle Larson signed a sponsorship agreement with Prime. [67] The partnership was announced and made public by Adam Stern of Sports business journal, on his Twitter account. The endorsement was also mentioned during the 2024 Daytona 500 race, with the logo going to mainly appear on Kyle's helmets.
As of March 2024, the drink brand has endorsed a total of ten athletes those include: Patrick Mahomes, Kyle Larson, Erling Haaland, Auston Matthews, Bud Crawford, Israel Adesanya, Alisha Lehmann, Alexander Volkanovski, Dricus du Plessis, and Shakur Stevenson. In the same month, Prime became the first center-ring mat sponsor of WWE, for which Paul performs, when it was revealed during the March 8, 2024, episode of SmackDown ; it will sponsor all of WWE's pay-per-view and livestreaming events, beginning with WrestleMania XL. [68] [69]
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings each day. Coca-Cola ranked No. 87 in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. Based on Interbrand's "best global brand" study of 2020, Coca-Cola was the world's sixth most valuable brand.
Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew in some countries, is a carbonated soft drink brand produced and owned by PepsiCo. The original formula was invented in 1940 by Tennessee beverage bottlers Barney and Ally Hartman. A revised formula was created by Bill Bridgforth in 1958. The rights to this formula were obtained by the Tip Corporation of Marion, Virginia. William H. "Bill" Jones of the Tip Corporation further refined the formula, launching that version of Mountain Dew in 1961. In August 1964, the Mountain Dew brand and production rights were acquired from Tip by the Pepsi-Cola company, and the distribution expanded across the United States and Canada.
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Gatorade is an American brand of sports-themed beverage and food products, built around its signature line of sports drinks. Gatorade is currently manufactured by PepsiCo and is distributed in over 80 countries. The beverage was first developed in 1965 by a team of researchers led by Dr. Robert Cade. It was originally made for the Gators at the University of Florida to replenish the carbohydrates that the school's student-athletes burned and the combination of water and electrolytes that they lost in sweat during vigorous sports activities.
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Four Loko is a line of alcoholic beverages sold by Phusion Projects of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Four Loko's recipe formerly included caffeine. Phusion operates as Drink Four Brewing Company. Four Loko, the company's most popular beverage, debuted in the United States market in 2005 and is available in 49 states, and in 21 countries including Ecuador, Guatemala, Paraguay, The Bahamas, Peru, Mexico, Colombia, Bolivia, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, China, Canada and some countries in Europe. The name "Four" is derived from the original drink having four "key ingredients".
Bang Energy is an American brand of energy drinks made by Vital Pharmaceuticals, a corporation located in Florida. As of 2020, Bang was the fourth highest selling energy drink in the United States, behind Monster, Red Bull and Rockstar Energy.
Venom Energy is an American brand of energy drink that is produced and distributed by Keurig Dr Pepper of Plano, Texas. It is one of the few energy drinks that uses a thick aluminum bottle. Venom Energy was released in 2002 in a more typical beverage container and was relaunched in the new aluminum bottle and with a new taste in early 2008.
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Olajide Olayinka Williams "JJ" Olatunji, known professionally as KSI, is an English social media influencer, professional boxer, and musician. He is the CEO of Misfits Boxing and the co-owner of Prime Hydration, XIX Vodka, Sidemen Clothing, restaurant chain Sides and cereal brand Best Breakfasts.
Logan Alexander Paul is an American social media influencer, professional wrestler, YouTuber, entrepreneur, and actor. He is currently signed to WWE, where he competes on the SmackDown brand and is the current WWE United States Champion. He has over 23 million subscribers on his YouTube channel, and has ranked on the Forbes list for the highest paid YouTube creators in 2017, 2018, and 2021. He is the co-founder of Prime beverages. Paul has also run the Impaulsive podcast since November 2018, which has over 4 million YouTube subscribers.
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Launching on February 17, the new Mango flavor will be available exclusively through a Prime x KSI bundle on the official UK store page.
The wild popularity of Prime can be credited to KSI and Paul. KSI, a British rapper and boxer whose real name is Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji, has 24.1 million subscribers on YouTube, 11.1 million followers on TikTok and 12.7 million followers on Instagram. Meanwhile, YouTuber-turned-boxer Paul boasts 23.6 million subscribers on the video-sharing platform and 25.5 million followers on Instagram. Combined, these two men wield influence over nearly 100 million followers – more than the population of Vietnam.
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: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)Today, FC Bayern Munich announced its partnership with Logan Paul and KSI's popular beverage brand, PRIME. Founded by the YouTube stars in 2022, PRIME's flagship product, Hydration, a sports drink alternative, will be the official isotonic partner for the club of 33-time German champions.
During an appearance in Toronto this past weekend, the World Wrestling Entertainment-contracted Paul hinted that they had signed a Leafs player. 'We may have just signed someone from the Toronto Maple Leafs to Prime," Paul told fans at Yonge-Dundas Square. "I can't say who it is yet, but be on the lookout because we got another big signing.'