Financials
Celsius Holdings, Inc. announced that CDS Ventures of South Florida, LLC purchased $2,000,000 in shares. Carl DeSantis, formerly Chairman of the Board of Directors of Rexall Sundown, Inc. has additionally, through his majority-owned company CDS, provided $2 million in equity financing to fund Celsius continued expansion. Link • Beverage-Air Corp. laid off about 70 workers. The company said the layoffs amount to about 15 percent of its workforce and are "due to lower demand for its products as a result of an unprecedented weak economic environment." Beverage-Air is a supplier of commercial refrigeration to the North American food service industry. Link • Coca-Cola Enterprises will release first-quarter 2009 earnings before the market opens on Tuesday, April 28. A conference call discussing these results will be webcast live over the Internet at 10:00 a.m. ET that morning. • Coca-Cola Co. Inc. bought a minority stake in Innocent Drinks, a U.K.-based maker of fruit smoothies and vegetable dishes. Innocent sells about 2 million smoothies a week. The company currently sells its products in about 13 countries. Link • US drinking water retailer Glacier reported an increase in revenues for 2008, bucking the trends of both the recession and the backlash against bottled water. Link • Boreal Water Collection Inc. won its bid in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to acquire the spring water business of Leisure Time Spring Water. Link
Law, Policy and Advocacy
The Kick the Bottle campaign, launched recently in Burlington, Vt., is on a mission to get people to give up their bottled water habit. Link • Groups from across New York state applauded passage of the Bigger Better Bottle Bill as part of the 2009-10 state budget. Link • A bill signed Friday by Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe is intended to make prices in stores more consistent across the state, particularly for beer from major breweries. Act 783 will prevent brewers from offering one wholesaler better pricing than they offer another. Link • According to a new report, 52 percent of adults believe definitely or probably that alcopops encourage underage drinking. The report also finds that because the drinks can be easily confused with non-alcoholic beverages, 92 percent of adults strongly support the use of warning labels on alcopops. Most adults also support greater restrictions on advertising that focuses on youth. Link • In response to opinion pieces by conservative commentators urging readers to boycott Pepsi for its alleged support of the gay lifestyle, Arnold Wayne Jones at gay community publication The Dallas Voice wrote an opinion piece entitled "Why we should all drink Pepsi." Link • The U.S. International Trade Commission upheld an initial ITC ruling that found Niutang did not infringe Tate & Lyle’s patents for manufacturing the sweetener sucralose. Link
New SKUs
PepsiCo introduced Sierra Mist Ruby Splash. Link • SOL Elixirs LLC introduced solixir sparkling botanical beverages to the United States. Link • Nestle’s Juicy Juice announced Juicy Juice Brain Development and Juicy Juice Immunity designed to benefit children during different stages of their growth and development. Link • Double D Beverage announced all-natural Beaver Natural Sodas. Link
Distribution
Crunk!!! Energy Drink has announced that Central Beverage in Chicago Illinois will be distributing Crunk Energy Drink in the Chicago metro area. Central Beverage in Chicago marks the fourth major market that Crunk!!! has opened up in the last month following: Florida, Arizona, and San Diego. • DNA Beverage Corporation announced that it is selling its drinks at a large number of select 7-Eleven C-Stores located throughout Florida. Link • SlumpBuster Energy, Inc. announced its new distribution agreement with Garber Bros. in New England. Link
People
Jim Ryan has been elected Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Beverage Importers, a national alcohol beverage trade association headquartered in Washington, DC. Founded in 1933, NABI is the oldest trade association in the US, serving the alcohol beverage industry. Jim was previously head of NABI’s executive committee from March 2007 through March 2009.
Miscellaneous
Coca-Cola Europe created a new advertising model for Sprite, launching a young musician named Katie Vogel. The audience can follow and interact with this 23-year old singer from London as she creates new opportunities for herself by following her dream. By joining her journey online, the audience can influence her choices through commenting and voting directly in the GREEN EYED WORLD videos using their own Facebook profile. Link • The Federal Aviation Administration is demanding answers from the owner of a seaplane used as a flying billboard by Red Bull, following an ABC News investigation that raised questions about the plane’s safety. Link • Buying habits in Aspen, Colo. supermarkets have changed due to the economic climate, as shoppers have traded down from high-end waters to private label. Link • Fruit2O announced the re-launch of www.fruit2o.com. Link • Twenty-three percent of beverage consumers won’t substitute another product if they can’t find the SKU they want, reported Bruce Miner, director of category management for Dr Pepper Snapple Group. Link • Sports drinks may weaken your teeth, a new study shows. Link • Overall growth in the global dairy drinks market slowed to just 0.5 percent in 2008 (from 2.4 percent in 2007) according to recent research by beverage industry specialists Canadean Limited. Deteriorating economic conditions coupled with the impact and after effects of the melamine scandal in Asia (which now accounts for 45.2 percent of entire global demand) have been the primary reasons for the slowdown in growth. Link • Forbes printed an assessment of what Coca-Cola did wrong and right in China. Link • The Norwalk Advocate ran an article about SoBe veteran John Bello working with Adina and looking for Norwalk area offices. Link • Steve Jugan, Allied Brand manager for Hansen‘s Beverage Company, joined a group of other action sport junkies as part of The Push-Lost Energy invitational. Link Caffeine enhances athletic performance, and it is legal, one of the few performance enhancers that is not banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Link
Promotions/Appearances
vitaminwater10 launched in secret new york" des10ation," Link and Radar had video of Carmen Electra at the event. Link • 900 bottles of vitaminwater were donated to the Milwaukee Hunger Task Force last week, with more on the way. Link • Ceres and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants selected Ball Corporation as a co-winner for the Best First Time Reporter Award for sustainability reporting in the 2009 Ceres-ACCA North American Sustainability Awards. Link • The Tea Council of the USA, Inc. announced the 3rd Annual Calm-A-Sutra of Tea Competition, giving college students an opportunity to win a $15,000 educational scholarship. Misty May-Treanor, professional beach volleyball champ and former "Dancing With The Stars" contestant, launched this contest. Link • The Sunny Delight Beverages Co. announced that it joined the SmartWay Transport Partnership, a collaboration between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the freight industry. Link • Honest Tea and The Sierra Club partnered to support "sustainabili-tea." Link • XYIENCE is offering Kum & Go convenience store shoppers a chance to win a Sportster 883 Low by Harley-Davidson, Link and offering Couche-Tard customers a chance to win a VIP experience at UFC 97: Redemption in Montreal. Link • Xfuel announced the sponsorship of Team Foxy, the largest top ranked female gamers organization, Link and also the sponsorship of Independent Superstars of Professional Wrestling. Link