Regular readers of this column (all nine of you) are aware that I’m not one to blast regulation. In fact, my knee tends to jerk the other way, believing that, grandstanding aside, the social obligations of a business mean that most regulations are worthy of strong consideration and adoption.
One Drop is unlike the rest of the Marley’s Mellow Mood line in that it is not a “relaxation beverage.” The Marley brand has been growing – it’s up to more than 65,000 stores in the U.S. and 10,000 internationally, according to company president Kevin McClafferty, but so far One Drop is only in about 10,000 of those domestic accounts.
The Coca-Cola Co. Inc. has introduced a new line of tea and juice drinks for its FUZE brand as it prepares to hand over distribution of Nestea to Nestle Waters North America (NWNA) at the end of 2012. Earlier this year, Coke and NWNA announced that they would alter their 20 year partnership and marketing agreement of the Nestea brand to focus away from North America.The new FUZE offerings include a lemon tea, a tea and lemonade blend, and a strawberry lemonade.
Since late March, the successful initial public offering (IPO) of natural foods company Annie’s Inc. (you’ve probably bought their macaroni and cheese before) has dominated market-related discussions within the natural products industry. One reason for this is that, unlike the technology industry, where IPOs frequently happen, consumer brands usually get acquired prior to achieving the size necessary to garner sufficient institutional investor interest to support going public.
Dean Foods, the largest dairy processor in the U.S., has announced plans to launch an initial public offering (IPO) for White Wave Foods, a company subsidiary that markets Silk, Horizon Organic, and International Delight brands. Dean is aiming to raise $300 million in the offering and use the funds to pay down its debt, according to the filing.
It's probably too late to put together a company before Expo East, but according to the New York Times, a lot of the athletes at the Olympics this year are drinking beetroot juice and tart cherry juice to improve their performance.
For a brand that plans to spend $70 million in advertising this year, SK Energy, the energy shot with a philanthropic philosophy, is nevertheless embracing a grass roots sensibility. Co-founded by rapper Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, SK Energy recently signed a new distribution deal with Grass Roots Beverage for Florida. Grass Roots is a wholly-owned subsidiary of DNA Brands and distributes a range of entrepreneurial beverage brands including C2O coconut water and New Leaf teas.
As part of a major expansion in its sales and marketing initiatives, Living Essentials, the marketer of 5-Hour Energy, has introduced a new pink lemonade flavor for the energy shot in an attempt to broaden its consumer base and appeal to a range of demographics, particularly women. Living Essentials is launching the new flavor in in partnership with the Avon Foundation for Women and has committed a donation of five cents per bottle of Pink Lemonade 5-Hour Energy to the organization.
As a subcategory of the RTD Tea group, these products seem to be growing even faster than their single-serve, grab-and-go counterparts, mostly because the refrigerated case is the home of some pretty hot brands, including Gold Peak and GTs Kombucha. GTs appears all over scan data categories, by the way, also showing up in a variety of juice and fruit drink categories.
According to the FDA, disease claims made on the Lithia site include that the product can help lower LDL cholesterol levels, can help lower blood pressure, and fight fungal and viral infections. And that's just for starters. The product also claims that the lithium bicarbonate in the product can help with everything from Alzheimers to headaches, cancer and strokes.
Coca-Cola Freestyle, an on-premise soda delivery system that allows consumers to build custom tailored beverages, is gradually making its way into convenience stores and recently gained a new partner in Massachusetts-based Tedeschi Food Shops. While Coca-Cola initially targeted restaurant chains for Freestyle, the cola giant began to test the soda fountain machines in c-stores late last year and is aiming for continued expansion in the channel.
BevNET’s 2012 Water Guide is now available. It features over 100 companies that make bottled water, water enhancements (powders and tablets), and supplier and services companies that deal with companies…
Expect GNC end-caps in Safeway stores’ non-carb aisles up until February resets, according to Shadow COO Sam Jones. The brand has largely incubated in Arizona through Kalil Bottling in Tucson, along with New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada and parts of Minnesota in smaller chains and convenience stores, but the Safeway move gives it national authorizations.
In one of the more creative uses for the retail medium, Activate has launched a new pop-up shop in Venice, CA that asks consumers to pay for its vitamin-enhanced water with “calories or cash." Calling the temporary installation a "part pop-up retail experience and part social experiment," Activate has partnered with the Get America Fit Foundation, an anti-obesity non-profit organization, to give away free bottles of the water to customers who participate in some type of physical activity at the store.
