Financials
Frutarom had a record year as the company continues to grow for the ninth consecutive year. Link
Law, Policy and Advocacy
Maryland lawmakers this week floated the idea of raising alcohol taxes. The bill would quadruple the excise tax on alcoholic drinks. Taxes on beer would rise from 9 cents per gallon to 36 cents. The tax on distilled liquor would increase from $1.50 per gallon to $6 and the levy on a gallon of wine would rise from 40 cents to $1.60. Link • A suburban Detroit man who sold generic soda syrup as Coca-Cola will be on probation for a year. Link • The Obama administration has nominated Dr. Margaret Hamburg to run the FDA and Baltimore Health Commissioner Dr. Joshua Sharfstein to serve as her principal deputy. Link • Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has resolved the state’s enforcement action against the sellers of Cocaine energy drink. Under the judgment, the product cannot be sold in the state of Texas and all Internet marketing must disclose that the product is not available in Texas. Link
Miscellaneous
The New York Times printed an article reviewing the trend toward sugar and away from HFCS. Link • A building supply company has moved into the former Pepsi Bottling Plant in Horseheads, N.Y. and will use the former plant as a warehouse and store. Link • The Corn Refiners Association has spent a reported $30 million over the last nine months to convince everyone that high-fructose corn syrup is just as healthy as sugar, according to Forbes. Link • Red Bull is introducing a 473 ml can in the U.K. Link
People
PepsiCo, Inc. announced the election of Shona L. Brown to its board of directors. Ms. Brown, 42, is Senior Vice President, Business Operations of Google Inc., a position she has held since 2006. From 2003 to 2006 she served as Vice President, Business Operations of Google Inc., where she led internal business operations and people operations. From October 1995 to August 2003, Ms. Brown was at McKinsey & Company, a management consulting firm, where she had been a partner since December 2000. Link
New SKUs
Zymes Omega Solutions Inc. announced an omega-3 enhanced water, OmegaChill. Link • Inko’s LLC announced the nationwide availability of its eleventh flavor introduction: Inko’s Lemon White Tea. Link
Distribution
Delta hasn’t decided if it will keep Coke as its beverage provider once the carrier’s operations are fully combined with merger partner Northwest Airlines Corp. Link • WheyUP has expanded its distribuiton in Southern California through a distribution deal with Dornbush Distributors. Dornbush has placed WheyUP in 70 Mobil on the Run locations from San Diego to Los Angeles. All 3 flavors, Wild Berry, Tropical Citrus and the new Grape Punch are currently available. • Innovative Beverage Group Holdings, Inc. announced that the company has entered into an agreement with Arrow Beer Distributing to bring drank to 15 counties in Eastern Pennsylvania. Link • Wet Planet Beverages and AM/PM announced the introduction of Jolt Energy into the AM/PM coolers. Link
Promotions/Appearances
The Coca-Cola Foundation announced a pilot Request for Proposal grant process designed to get Alabama’s youth up and moving this summer. Selected programs will be awarded grants between $10,000 and $25,000 each. Link • Coca-Cola Co. will put two of its fast-rising brands on center stage for the next three weeks as the NCAA men’s basketball tournament begins. Coke Zero is running a “Taste the Madness” campaign. vitaminwater will be pushing a “Revive to Survive” theme. Link • The Syracuse Crunch announced featured vitaminwater Puck Giveaway Night at the Crunch March 21. The first 2,500 fans in attendance received a puck, courtesy of vitaminwater. Link • The Asheville Citizen-Times published a profile on Volt-maker High Voltage Beverages. Link • The latest ad campaign for Amp introduces the tagline, “Before every moment, there is a moment.” Link • Tropicana has partnered with Cool Earth, an international trust dedicated to protecting the rainforest, for its ‘Rescue the Rainforest” campaign. Link • Bionic Products Inc has announced that it has negotiated an agreement and partnership with Gilman Nutrition of Tampa, Florida – a nationwide formulator and nutritionist. Link