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The new Fred focuses on three messages: what happened to the image of water, the flask’s compatibility with pockets and the push for endless refills.

It shouldn’t be surprising to see traditional breakfast food producers chasing the liquid breakfast market, however; that’s because it’s becoming a can’t-beat-them-so-you-join-them-proposition.

Wesley Vultaggio, AriZona's owner and creative director, told BevNET that while MiO brings new, untested flavors to the market, AriZona’s water enhancers benefit from the established success of its flavors. The company has been selling these flavors in cans for years, now they just have a different form.

As part of its Taste of Tomorrow program, Kroger has taken on Just Chill, KonaRed, AquaBall and Fred Water. Meanwhile, Red Jacket Juice and AMAZON Beverages have secured distribution with smaller independent retailers.

It’s fraught with controversy, but the latest in certifications -- which have in the past decade ranged from carbon impact statements to recycled content, from Organic to Fair Trade to Kosher and Gluten-Free -- is non-GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms). Runa co-founder and co-CEO Dan MacCombie recently volunteered to help BevNET readers understand some of the work involved in the process, as his company found it to be fraught with speed bumps. Here’s his story.

While our sources don’t necessarily sort by marketed demographic, here’s an interesting look at some of the top kids’ beverages via a look at the $1.1 billion aseptic juice drinks category. No surprise that Capri Sun is the leader here, but there are rising brands in the mix, including Honest Kids and V8 V-Fusion.

The Coca-Cola Co. Inc. has once again extended the Dasani brand name to a new line of products and today introduced Dasani Sparkling, a five-SKU line of naturally flavored, unsweetened and lightly carbonated waters. Coke will roll out Dasani Sparkling in select outlets beginning in December, and launch the brand nationally in February 2014, according to a statement from the company.

Amid rising consumer concerns about obesity and sagging demand for highly sweetened ready-to-drink (RTD) teas, U.S. beverage marketers should look to the evolution and growth of unsweetened and fresh-brewed tea products in Asian Pacific markets as a way to jumpstart stagnant growth in the category, according to a new report from Euromonitor International, a London-based market research firm.

Whether or not The Coca-Cola Co., Inc., is feeling the heat from a growing onslaught of detractors and health nuts, changes are afoot.

Jenny Burns, Honest Tea’s mission director, said that she’s encouraged by the company’s continued dedication to organic ingredients. The mission report states that in 2012, the company purchased approximately 4.9 million pounds of organic ingredients. This represents a 13 percent increase from the previous year and compares favorably to 2007, she said, before The Coca-Cola Co., Inc., acquired Honest Tea.