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In its first major step to divest from company-owned bottling operations, The Coca-Cola Co., Inc. today announced that it will sell some of its distribution rights to five independent bottlers. While details of the agreements have not yet been finalized, Muhtar Kent, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The Coca-Cola Co., hailed the plan as one that would accelerate “the transformation of our U.S. system in ways that will establish a clear path to achieve our 2020 Vision.”

Mary Ellen Adcock, the vice president of natural foods for Kroger, will be speaking on the topic of building beverage brands in Kroger stores during the BevNET Live program in New York. Her talk will offer an unmatched opportunity to hear how beverage entrepreneurs can access the reach and volume offered by Kroger, the largest grocery store operator in the U.S., while still maintaining scalable, measured growth objectives.

With an abundance of niche and mainstream beverages competing for share in today’s dynamic drinks market, not to mention a crowded foodservice and grocery retail world, having a good understanding of how trends influence consumer needs and wants is invaluable. But trend information comes from so many directions. So how can you determine which trends to follow and which to leave behind? And how do you translate today’s hot trend into something useful?

Three federal legislators released a report on Wednesday that accused energy drink companies of making products that sport inconsistent labels and are marketing highly caffeinated products directly at young people. The report contained several recommendations for the energy drink industry in order to reduce confusion and increase transparency about ingredients, but also came at a time when leading energy drink companies are already moving in that direction.

BevNET is pleased to announce that two of the co-founders of investment fund Alliance Consumer Growth (ACG), Josh Goldin and Trevor Nelson, will be speaking as featured investors during BevNET Live, to be held June 4 and 5 at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Manhattan.

Body Armor, the brand started by Fuze founder Collins and backed by heavyweight investor and Vitaminwater sales chief Mike Repole, announced yesterday that the nutrient-enhanced “superdrink” will be distributed by the DPSG network in New Jersey and Northern California.

In the past 18 months Zola has launched a two-pronged attack on the RTD beverage world, growing both its acai-centric lines while also turning its coconut water concept into an in-demand product line that has growing shelf placements and fast turns.