Early-Stage Intros: Meeting The Next Generation of Beverage Brands

It’s fair to say that tea-based tonics, birch tree water and canned wine are beverage concepts that might not be ready for mainstream grocery aisles. However, they may represent the kind of bleeding-edge innovation that has propelled significant change on beverage shelves over the past decade. One need look no further than the widespread adoption of coconut water and surging demand for cold-brewed coffee to find indications of how ingredient and formulation trends can make an enduring impact at retail and spur innovation in mature beverage categories.

At the 2016 Winter Fancy Food Show, BevNET spoke with five early-stage beverage companies, each of which markets innovative concepts for packaged drinks and fresh takes on emerging trends like tree water and dairy-free creamers. Watch the following video for our interviews with Wei Kitchen, Sapp, Nutpods, Mancan and Teaonic, presented in playlist format.