Taco Bell tests Mountain Dew AM in Fresno

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Taco Bell is once again using Fresno as a test market for a new product.

Last year the locos taco was a big hit and is now sold around the country. Local reaction to a new breakfast drink though is mixed.

Taco Bell is test marketing Mountain Dew AM at 24 Fresno locations.

The breakfast drink is a mix of Mountain Dew and orange juice. It doesn't taste as sweet as it sounds but personal trainer Chase Thomas thinks people will give it a try.

Thomas said, "I love Mountain Dew because it's got a lot of caffeine in it. It gets me going. It's like my coffee in the morning but it's more of a lunch thing for me."

But registered dietitian Kim Tirapelle worries about the drink's high sugar content. Tirapelle explained, "Fresno County and Kern County, two of the highest rates of obesity, diabetes in the country and they come out with these drinks in the area."

Tirapelle works with school kids and adults and warns them about the dangers of high sugar levels in popular drinks. She said, "Typically in a can of soda, Mountain Dew for example, in 12 ounces of Mountain Dew there are 47 grams of sugar and that's equal to about 11 teaspoons of added sugar."

Tirapelle says the American Heart Association recommends adult men to limit their sugar intake to nine teaspoons a day. For women just six teaspoons daily. "If you're looking at a Red Bull you're looking at 39 grams of sugar so that's about 10 teaspoons of added sugar."

Mountain Dew AM tastes like an energy drink. Taco Bell says if it does well in Fresno, like the locos taco a year ago, it will be added to franchises nationwide.

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fresno, fresno county, taco bell, business, dale yurong

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