Press Clips: MBA Meets HPP; ABA Takes to Vermont

imageMBA Meets HPP

Fortune recently profiled Lumi Organics founder and CEO Hillary Lewis, who left a career in finance on Wall Street to make high-pressure-processed juice in Charlottesville, Virginia. The 29-year-old launched her juice startup in 2013, and within two years, Lumi’s organic juices are available across the U.S. The brand is represented in 42 Whole Foods Market locations in the company’s mid-Atlantic region, 43 Safeway stores and sold throughout The Fresh Market chain of specialty and natural grocery stores.

ABA Takes to Vermont

The American Beverage Association (ABA) has already spent more than $500,000 this year to combat a proposal in Vermont that would impose a 2-cents-per-ounce tax on sugary drinks. According to the VT Digger, the ABA spent $16,000 on three lobbyists and $513,137 on advertising, telemarketing and other expenditures since January. Alliance for a Healthier Vermont, the non-profit in support of the proposed measure, spent $24,310 on lobbying activities and $20,000 on advertising. But that shouldn’t be interpreted as a mismatch. Last November voters in Berkeley California overcame a $1.675 million effort from the beverage industry to pass similar legislation.

DRI580_NERDS_LemonberrySlush_wLogo_highresKD Adds ‘Signature Slushes’ to His List of Accolades

NBA star Kevin Durant is returning to his Sonic roots, sort of. Eight years after being drafted by the Seattle Supersonics (now the Oklahoma City Thunder), Durant has partnered with fast-food chain Sonic to release a pair of signature candy slushes, appropriately named “The All-Star” and “The Game Changer,” both of which are made with Nerds candy. Unfortunately for Durant, he’ll have enjoy his slushes from the sidelines, as his team failed to make the 2015 NBA playoffs. But maybe he’ll catch one of his two Sonic TV commercials watching from home?

Arizona Going Global?

Is AriZona looking to expand internationally?  Euromonitor Senior Beverages Analyst Hope Lee seems to think so. In a recent report, Lee explored Arizona’s potential as a global player given its increasing competition in the US market as Coca-Cola, PepsiCo/Unilever and Nestle expand their ready-to-drink tea offerings. But according to Hope there’s room for AriZona to grow overseas, writing “the nature of the AriZona product, its marketability and packaging show that it can be a viable brand in Europe and other developed markets.”