Suja Essentials

An astute marketer, Ricks will be speaking on “the elements of challenger brands” – a topic he knows well from his work with Mountain Dew, Bear Naked and Plum, Inc. In each case, those brands were challengers that carved shelf space and profitability from an established category hierarchy: Mountain Dew from the established cola brands, Bear Naked from moribund cereal and granola companies, Plum by applying organic ingredients to the baby food category.

Filmed on location at the Baltimore Convention Center, BevNET CEO John Craven and BevNET Editor-in-Chief Jeff Klineman break down the show and its impact on natural beverage categories.

Though most exhibitors felt attendance and energy at the show to be lethargic, Expo East nonetheless showcased the ongoing evolution of cold-pressed juices and cold-brewed coffee.

In a partnership built on the bonds (or, in this case, the bogs) of expertise, cranberry giant Ocean Spray has aligned with RIPE Bar Juice maker FreshBev on a new line of cold-pressed, HPP juices.

Natural Products Expo East, one of the leading venues to see and sample all-natural and organic products, will open this week at the Baltimore Convention Center. For attendees of the event, we’ve created a printable show planner that includes a comprehensive list of beverage exhibitors at the event, listed both alphabetically and by booth number. Download yours now!

Whole Kids Foundation is kicking off back-to-school season with a goal of raising $3 million to fund salad bars and gardens for schools and nutrition education classes for teachers.

We may be facing the last throes of summer, but it’s clear that cold-pressed juice companies are anything but content to lean back and soak in the sun.

Continuing to pour innovation into the fast-growing cold-pressed juice category, Blueprint is launching two new flavors in Whole Foods.

It’s not riding on endless tracks, but the founders of the runaway train named Harmless Harvest are making moves to ensure that there’s no end in sight.

Earlier this month, Suja launched a line of cold-brewed, organic and “cold-pressured” (aka HPP) teas. The teas are also certified biodynamic. It’s hard to really determine how much this product benefits from being HPP versus pasteurized, but we definitely like the concept of a cold brew tea as part of the Suja line.

The lawsuit’s dismissal was based on the fact that scientific arguments in favor of the effects of high-pressure processing (HPP) as a way of deterring bacterial growth were cited in the very same documents that the plaintiffs were using to prove HPP’s lack of effectiveness.

Suja Juice Co. announced Tuesday the national, Whole Foods-exclusive launch of a four-SKU line of high pressure processed (HPP) teas that features an unsweetened, biodynamic black tea.

In part of two of our segment, we discuss investment deals seen in the non-alcoholic beverage business and offer predictions on what’s to come for growth categories in the second half of 2014.

After a remarkable stretch in-house – one that culminated in Suja being named supplier of the year at Whole Foods – Fleishman is returning to his consultancy, Purely Righteous Brands, one that partner and longtime friend Andrew Aussie incubated during his absence.