Reflecting the evolving needs of today's consumer and the increased desire for more better-for-you choices on-the-go, Purchase, N.Y.-based PepsiCo Inc. launched a new, state-of-the-art food and beverage vending initiative called Hello Goodness.

The vending initiative offers good- and better-for-you product choices from the company's diverse and highly complementary food and beverage portfolio, it says. PepsiCo will place several thousand units throughout the United States in 2016 in a variety of locations, including select healthcare, recreational, transportation, governmental, workplace and educational facilities.

The Hello Goodness vending machine, which also will be available in a beverage-only version, features a thoughtfully chosen selection of PepsiCo products such as such as Naked Juice, Smartfood Delight popcorn, Lay's Oven Baked potato chips, Quaker Real Medleys bars, Pure Leaf iced tea, Propel Electrolyte Water, Tropicana Pure Premium and Sabra Ready-to-Eat Hummus cups.

The following are additional features of the Hello Goodness vending machine:

• A digital point-of-sale (POS) touchscreen with  nutritional information of products
• Suggestions for food and beverage pairing ideas
• Smart equipment that gives PepsiCo real-time consumer preference insights to further inform future offerings
• Dual climate-control shelving, allowing both perishable and non-perishable items to be vended together at the correct temperature
• Cashless and digital vending

"Consumers want more choice when it comes to what they eat and drink on-the-go and we're providing the choices they want," said Kirk Tanner, chief operating officer of PepsiCo North America Beverages, in a statement. "For years, PepsiCo has been transforming its portfolio to offer more and better food and beverages. We're continuing this journey with our new Hello Goodness vending initiative, which brings together the power of our brands and our expertise in design, category management and equipment innovation expertise."