How to tackle the mid-afternoon munchies? For decades, people have turned to unhealthy snacks because they’re easy, convenient and meet a hunger attack with a satisfying crunch. In 2025, there’s a new way to address this: GLP-1 drugs, which help supress appetite and eliminate those cravings entirely.
But what if there was a third alternative from the functional beverage category?
Släcka wants to be a ‘snack replacement drink’. That’s not a meal replacement drink, but one designed to hit those mid-afternoon cravings by providing a drink that’s an alternative to unhealthy snacks.
It’s well-known that people often mistake dehydration for hunger: Släcka is there to hydrate both with water and electrolytes. It’s also designed as that mid-afternoon pick-me-up for focus and energy.
But its edge comes in that it’s been designed to be there when people would usually reach for a bag of chips in a search for satiety: helping consumers take back a ‘sense of control’ in a different way to drugs or snacks.
The custom blend of ingredients, 5-HTP (a compound which research shows may increase feelings of fullness), paraxanthine (a caffeine metabolite delivering smoother, more focused energy without the jitters) and electrolytes ‘work synergistically to curb cravings, boost energy and improve mood’.
Serial entrepreneur David Allred was developing his concept for Släcka before GLP-1s hit the mainstream conversation.
It took around two years to bring the product to market: working with an organic chemist to get the efficacy of the product right.
His focus was not on the weight loss market: but on fighting back against Big Food and, more specifically, Big Snacks.
“There’s a billion-dollar industry built around trying to get us to eat this stuff, the chips, the cookies,” he said. “Sugar is so addictive and satisfying.”
Sure, the correct answer to the mid-afternoon munchies is to eat a healthy snack: but that’s simply not how the day plays out for the vast majority of people. Snacks have been engineered – through decades of research – to create ‘hyper-palatable’ foods with potent combinations of fat, sodium, sugar and other additives that drive people to eat, eat and overeat.
“If your snack of choice is an apple, then you probably don’t need us,” acknowledged Allred. “We’re going after the people who have been manipulated by Big Food which says: have a cracker, have a snack, have a highly palatable but nutrient-poor food.”
But now the stars have aligned because the conversation around GLP-1 drugs has also shifted the focus to the idea of appetite control.
Simplicity and strength
Släcka, the Swedish word meaning “to quench,” rooted in Scandinavian simplicity and strength.
"The name reflects our mission to empower individuals knowing that they are in control, helping you conquer cravings and stay on track with your goals," states the brand.
And yet, the idea of using drugs to control appetite is not to everyone’s taste; nor is it necessarily a long-term solution (American adults take GLP-1s for an average of six months, according to the Society of Behavioral Medicine).
“If you’re going for GLP-1s, great,” said Allred. “I have many friends on weight loss drugs, and they love them. But we can come in when you’re done with them.
“Or, if you’re concerned about the long-term side effects. People say: ‘I can’t afford it’; ‘I’m scared of needles’, or ‘my doctor won’t prescribe it’.”
Släcka also provides that ritual for a mid-afternoon break that snacks provide – and injectable drugs and supplements don’t.
“People don’t change behavior; but you can change the behavior they’re doing,” said Allred. “If they’re drinking Coke their whole life and they want to reduce sugar, they’re not going to walk away. They’re going to switch to Diet Coke.”
Allred’s specialty is in empowerment (he’s even published a self-help book on the subject) and that, he says, is what it all comes down to. That’s particularly true in 2025: with so much flux and uncertainty across the world.
After years of struggling to control cravings for snacks and unhealthy foods, GLP-1s have helped people feel they have control over what they eat.
And that’s what Allred wants Släcka to be: a drink that hits the mid-afternoon munchies without bringing Big Food or Big Pharma into the equation.
