By Bel Hernandez

Just before Latin Heat was to publish our second article (READ HERE) on the Flamin’ Hot controversy, we received a statement from PepsiCo. The official statement finally clarifies the issue once and for all. It reads:

“A great deal has been recently discussed about the origin of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. The information we shared with the media has been misconstrued by some, which resulted in confusion around where we stand, a range of emotions among our employees and consumers and a strain on our valued friendship with Richard Montanez and the Latino community.  

The sincere truth is, at PepsiCo, we believe in the strength and power of teams, and we attribute the launch and success of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos and other products to several people who worked at PepsiCo,  including Richard Montanez.  

Far from being an urban legend, Richard had a remarkable 40-plus-year career at PepsiCo and made an  incredible impact on our business and employees and continues to serve as an inspiration today. His  insights and ideas on how to better serve Hispanic consumers were invaluable and directly resulted in  the success of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. To be clear, we have no reason to doubt the stories he shares about  taking the initiative to create new product ideas for the Cheetos brand, and pitching them to past  PepsiCo leaders. 

We also know there was a separate division team developing a spicy product offering for Cheetos and  other snack brands that were tested in market and found their way into permanent products on store  shelves, including Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. 

Different work streams tackling the same product without interacting occasionally occurred in the past  when divisions operated independently and were not the best at communicating. However, just because  we can’t draw a clear link between them, doesn’t mean we don’t embrace all of their contributions and  ingenuity, including Richard’s.  

Richard is an important part of PepsiCo’s history and the success of the company. He is an inspiration and his story cannot be belittled. We regret the confusion that has come from the recent speculation,  but most importantly we want Richard to know he is valued and cared for among PepsiCo’s employees and we only wish him happiness and success.”