PepsiCo Inc. is in advanced talks to buy healthier soda brand Poppi, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

The Purchase, New York-based beverage giant could announce the transaction as soon as next week, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information. The purchase price under discussion is more than $1.5 billion, the person said.

PepsiCo had planned to launch its own so-called functional soda under the brand Soulboost, but decided to scrap that effort because of early indicators it wouldn’t succeed.

While deliberations are at a late stage, they could still be delayed, the people said. A representative for PepsiCo declined to comment. A spokesperson for Poppi didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The “functional soda” category has been growing, especially compared to standard sodas. The lower-sugar beverages can include ingredients not found in standard soda, such as prebiotics, probiotics and added fiber and say they are aimed at improving digestive health. 

Functional beverages are “on fire” with New York-based FreshDirect, said Loan Heilner, the grocer’s merchandising director. She said sales are up more than 60% over last year, driven by brands like Olipop and Poppi. Big-brand sodas, meanwhile, are up only slightly compared with last year, she said. Coca-Cola Co. recently launched its own prebiotic soda, Simply Pop.

Austin-based Poppi was founded by Allison Ellsworth and Stephen Ellsworth. It gained notoriety in 2018 when the company — then known as Mother — received an investment from Cavu Venture Partners’ Rohan Oza on the television show Shark Tank. A slew of celebrities including Nicole Scherzinger and Ellie Goulding have also backed the company. 

PepsiCo has been turning to acquisitions of healthier brands recently. In October, it announced plans to acquire Siete Foods for $1.2 billion. The following month, it said it would buy the remaining 50% of Sabra Dipping Co. and PepsiCo-Strauss Fresh Dips & Spreads International GmbH.

“There’s a higher level of awareness in general of American consumers towards health and wellness,” Chief Executive Officer Ramon Laguarta said in PepsiCo’s February conference call with investors.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

• The U.S. government is asking European countries, including Denmark, to ramp up egg exports as American poultry farms reel from the spread of the avian flu, hiking up egg prices. The request comes after President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened Denmark, saying the U.S. would annex its territory of Greenland, while also threatening Europe with steep tariffs on alcohol.

The U.S. egg shortage has pushed the government to lean on Europe’s egg supplies, even as President Donald Trump threatens some countries with economic sanctions and steep tariffs.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has contacted Denmark and other European countries, asking them to ramp up egg exports amid the U.S. poultry farm’s battle with avian flu. A USDA representative in Europe formally contacted the Danish Egg Association in February about the trade organization’s willingness and capability to export eggs, according to letters viewed by Reuters.

“We’re still waiting to get more guidance from Washington on next steps, but do you have an estimate of the number of eggs that could be supplied to the United States (assuming they meet all the import requirements)?” a USDA letter sent earlier this month to the Danish Egg Association said.

“Washington is trying to get an estimate of the amount they could feasibly source,” it continues.

The USDA did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.

The USDA’s reported openness to accept exports from Denmark is markedly different in tone than President Donald Trump’s. He repeatedly claimed he would annex Denmark’s self-governing territory Greenland, even threatening economic sanctions and refusing to rule out military action to seize the island for its natural resources. 

The administration’s broader entreaty to Europe also contrasts with its combative stance on trade. In addition to tariffs on aluminum and steel imports, Trump has also called for a 200% tax on European alcohol imports.

The U.S. isn’t putting all its egg export hopes in one basket. The efforts to diversify egg supply are part of the USDA’s proposal to invest $1 billion in addressing egg costs, which have spiked to a record high of $5.90 for a dozen in February, a 10.4% increase from a year before and up 189% from an August 2023 low, according to the Consumer Price Index.

The avian flu has hobbled U.S. egg supply chains, resulting in the death of more than 20 million egg-laying hens in American farms in the last quarter of 2024. The U.S. has already sought help from Turkey, which plans to export 420 million eggs to the U.S. this year, according to the Egg Producers Central Union in Turkey.

Still, that pales in comparison to typical domestic supply. The U.S. produces 7.5 billion dozen eggs per year, according to the American Egg Board, but that number could decline should avian flu continue to ravage U.S. poultry farms. 

Denmark responds

The Danish Egg Association, for its part, is open to the idea of sending eggs to the U.S. over the next six months, but has not received any additional details from the U.S. regarding the quantity of eggs the county can accommodate, Jørgen Nyberg Larsen, CEO of the trade group, told Fortune.

Larsen said the country doesn’t have a large oversupply of eggs with which to increase exports, and likely won’t in the near future because of increased demand ahead of Easter. The Danish Egg Association also plans to supply its long-term, loyal customers before shifting attention to the U.S. Exports from Denmark would likely be in modest amounts at best.

European countries also process their eggs differently, not washing them of their natural protective coating, which requires them to be refrigerated, as they are in the U.S. The different hygiene standards could complicate how eggs are shipped.

The risk and reward of importing eggs

Relying on European eggs is a far cry from a certain success. Following the laws of supply and demand, more eggs should help relieve sticker shock in the grocery aisle, according to Thomas Kull, professor of supply chain management at Arizona State University’s W.P. Carey School of Business. Moreover, cheaper eggs from Europe could also pressure domestic producers to take a pricing hit and lower consumer costs, he told Fortune.

But in addition to Europe possibly not having eggs to spare, the U.S. will be concerned with how those eggs will arrive in the U.S., Kull said. There’s plenty of technology to transport delicate goods that are sensitive to vibrations, but the U.S. and exporting countries may lack the infrastructure to accommodate large egg shipments, with transport systems needing time to orient.

Above all, however, the Trump administration leaning on Europe for eggs could be a way for it to assert they are trying to curb the supply problem.

“The ultimate goal is to show that something is being done, or someone’s trying to do something,” Kull said. “You don’t know exactly what’s going to work.”

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

The era of the 150-hour rule is waning.

Utah lawmakers recently passed legislation eliminating 150- and 120-credit hour requirements for CPA licensure in state statutes. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox is expected to sign the bill, which will then become law on July 1, 2026, according to the Utah Association of CPAs.

“This is a major step forward for the accounting profession,” Susan Speirs, CEO of UACPA, said in a statement. “By modernizing the licensure pathway, we are making the profession more accessible while maintaining the highest standards of competency and integrity.”

Utah will reportedly become the third state to shed the 150-hour rule, following in the footsteps of Virginia and Ohio, according to CFO Dive.

It’s not just lawmakers pushing for reform; many in the industry want to see licensure requirements loosened as well.

AICPA earlier this month presented proposed changes to the Uniform Accountancy Act for stakeholder comment, as CFO Brew previously reported. If adopted, the changes would open a new pathway for licensure that would allow students to obtain an undergraduate degree in accounting and work for two years before taking the CPA exam, as opposed to the extra year of college the UAA currently requires.

Last year, KPMG came out against the 150-hour rule. “The cost of becoming a CPA has become too high,” Paul Knopp, KPMG US chair and CEO, wrote on LinkedIn. Around the same time, an audit leader at PwC told Bloomberg she supported “alternative pathways into accounting.”

This report was written by Alex Zank and was originally published by CFO Brew.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com