Cascara tea company Peloton is enlisting public support for its fight against a petition filed by fitness technology company Peloton Interactive to cancel its trademark for coffee-based beverages. The tea company launched a GoFundMe page this week to assist with legal costs as it prepares to challenge a Petition for Cancellation the fitness company filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office last week.

Sitting at the intersection of two consistently growing beverage categories, the addition of CBD to sports drinks has emerged as a rising trend over the past few years, offering functionality beyond the hydration benefits typically found in athletic performance beverages.

Nutrition platform brand Bulletproof 360 today announced a $13 million capital raise to fund the brand’s omnichannel expansion and the development of products in new and existing categories. The raise was led by Beliv, the Latin America-based business unit of multinational beverage corporation the CBC Group, and Rocana Ventures along with existing investors CAVU Venture Partners and Trinity Ventures.

CBD-infused beverage and snack brand Weller is expanding its platform beyond CBD with the launch of Sparkling Immunity, a new line that builds on the company’s goal to become a functional wellness brand while increasing its footprint with retailers that don’t carry CBD products.

Though the pandemic has created a tricky retail environment for early-stage beverage brands, with fewer grab-and-go cold case purchases and less consumer trial for innovative products, carbonated cold brew coffee brand Sofee is seeking to remain nimble by rolling out new ecommerce and marketing efforts.

In June, both leaders and ordinary people who work in the food and beverage industry spoke out against racism as national protests in response to the killing of George Floyd brought to light issues surrounding systemic inequality. Now, brands, distributors, retailers and advertising agencies have begun to take action, or build upon previously established efforts to address this inequality, particularly through programs and initiatives designed to support the advancement of BIPOC entrepreneurs.

Atomo Coffee, maker of “molecular coffee” made not from coffee beans but from upcycled ingredients, announced last week the close of a $9 million seed funding round. S2G Ventures, whose portfolio includes Beyond Meat and Ripple, along with AgFunder and Bessemer Venture Partners participated in the round.

Oxygen-enhanced water brand OXIGEN announced today that Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry has joined its team as an investor, advisory board member and global face of the brand.

If you’ve ever wondered what might happen if “Costco met Whole Foods and had an ecommerce child,” the result might look something like Bitewell. The new dietitian-curated CPG marketplace, which launched last month, offers a platform for emerging food and beverage brands while providing consumers with a weekly menu of better-for-you products offered at lower prices.

With the goal of becoming the “beverage of the outdoor industry,” Wild Barn Coffee co-founders Jenny Verrochi and Alyssa Evans are offering consumers a functional twist on their typical on-the-go caffeine fix with superfood-infused nitro cold brew.

While hibiscus has become an increasingly popular ingredient across beverage categories from kombucha to beer, cold brew hibiscus tea brand Wakava is offering a flavor less familiar to American consumers. Founded by Nigerian entrepreneur Olamide Adeboye, the St. Louis, Missouri-based brand aims to introduce new flavors to the American palate by offering a twist on a popular West African antioxidant beverage.

Essentia CMO Karyn Abrahamson has exited the company, according to an Essentia spokesperson. Zola Kane, Essentia’s VP of integrated marketing, has stepped into the interim CMO role.