What Makes a Milk?
A group of 32 U.S. congressmen on Friday submitted a letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, requesting the agency ban use of the word “milk” for non-dairy products. If adopted, the ban could be a major branding blow to soy and nut milk brands which have long used the term to market dairy alternatives.
According to New Food Economy’s H. Claire Brown, the congressmen claim that products that use the word “milk,” but contain no actual dairy are misleading to customers and hurt the dairy industry. Brown likens the letter to the battle against margarine in the 1870s, a product that prompted a similar scare for dairy farmers about competitive products.
The New York Times Meets the Man Behind Califia Farms
The New York Times Saturday got insight into the business mind of Greg Steltenpohl, the jazz musician turned beverage entrepreneur whose almond milk brand Califia Farms has been quickly expanding into the RTD coffee category.
The Times’ Stephanie Strom sat down with Steltenpohl to discuss Califia as well as his first big beverage venture, Odwalla, which was sold to the Coca-Cola Co. in 2001. Steltenpohl, 62, reveals that he never wanted to sell the juice brand and said he has no plans of letting Califia out of his hands any time soon.
But as Califia grows — its sales more than doubled in 2016 hitting $85 million — Steltenpohl may soon be faced with some offers too good to turn down.
PepsiCo CEO Joins Trump’s Economic Advisory Council
PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi has been been selected to join President-elect Donald Trump’s Strategic and Policy Forum, a committee composed of influential economic advisers from the corporate sector. Alongside Nooyi are Blackstone Chairman and CEO Steve Schwarzman, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Uber CEO Travis Kalanick.
According to The Street, the appointment of Nooyi, a supporter of the Democratic nominee for U.S. president, Hillary Clinton, surprised some political observers as post-election comments Nooyi made initially led Trump supporters on Twitter to call for boycott of PepsiCo products.
Philadelphia Soda Tax Lawsuit Dismissed
Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Gary S. Glazer on Monday dismissed a lawsuit challenging the city’s controversial “Soda Tax” on sweetened beverages, upholding the new law in a victory for Mayor Jim Kenney. The tax adds 1.5 cents-per-ounce to the cost of sugary and diet drinks at the distributor level.
According to Philly.com, revenue from the tax will go toward funding universal kindergarten in the city and speaking at an elementary school Monday Kenney urged the beverage industry to not appeal the case to the state Supreme Court.
The Philadelphians Against Grocery Tax Coalition responded to the court’s decision, declaring it would continue to oppose what it called a “discriminatory and regressive tax.”
Polar Seltzer Mystery Flavor Leaves Fans Guessing
Fans of Polar Seltzer are stockpiling bottles of a popular but limited new mystery flavor, The Boston Globe reported Sunday. Seltzer lovers took to Twitter under the hashtag #Seltzebrate to praise the holiday flavor, but no one could agree on just what the flavor was.
Many users detected vanilla, while some suggested it tasted like champagne. Whatever it is, the Massachusetts company’s holiday flavor appears to be selling well, with some individual stores like Thistle and Shamrock in Cambridge, Mass. reporting that their stock is dwindling fast.
Kid-made Lemonade Nears $1 Million Goal
Texas-based lemonade company Me & the Bees has raised $820,000 of a planned $1 million debt financing, according to the Austin Business Journal. This is good news for the company’s entrepreneur, 11-year-old Mikaila Ulmer.
Ulmer appeared on reality TV show “Shark Tank” in 2015 and since then the company has continued to take off, earning her trips to the White House and South Africa for the 2016 Dell Women’s Entrepreneur Network Summit.
Ulmer and her family reported selling 89,666 bottles between January and May in 2016. Most recently the company is expanding its portfolio to include other foods, drinks and gift merchandise.