The Flow: BevNET Live in Two Weeks; BevForce Interview

ON TOP

  • Breakout sessions are filling up and only a few seats remain for BevNET Live Winter 2010. Link
  • PurBlu, maker of GIVE Water, has invested in Green Shoots distribution, which will make it the exclusive distributor of the company's GIVE Water and GIVE Energy. Link
  • BevNET spoke with Josh Wand of BevForce and looked at the state of the industry. Wand anticipates a “significant increase in hiring” in 2011, and he also discussed his predictions and observations for the beverage world. Link

ON THE SHELVES

  • PepsiCo will launch its newest Gatorade offering "G Series Fit" in April 2011. it will be available in flavors like mango passionfruit and berry acai and have 10 calories per 8-ounce serving. Link
  • Beverage Brands Inc. has updated the packaging of its MATÉ fusion Tea by launching a new bottle design. Link

DISTRIBUTION

  • Apple Market Convenience Stores is set to start carrying Koma Unwind 'Chillaxation Drink' and Koma Unwind 'Chillaxation Shots' in all 47 locations of the retail chain in central and southwest Virginia and Eastern Kentucky. Link

IN THE COURTS

  • Snapple has been served with lawsuits in California and Florida for making “false and misleading claims” concerning its Acai Mixed Berry Red Tea. Link

IN THE MEDIA

  • The writer of a recent Mother Jones article examined the kombucha trend, looked at its health benefits and tried to brew a batch herself. She also spoke with Adam Goodman, brewer and owner of Kombucha Botanica Link
  • A recent article on the BBC News website examined the bottled water industry and how demand for product has increased. It also discussed industry-related trends. Link

TRENDS AND STUDIES

  • A study presented at the American Society of Nephrology's recent meeting in Denver indicated that consuming pomegranate juice on a regular basis may help lower the risk of infections for patients on dialysis. Link
  • A new study conducted by researchers at the University of Toronto has found that 30 mg of lycopene found in tomatoes – the equivalent to two glasses of tomato juice – is enough to help prevent osteoporosis. Link

FINANCIALS

  • For its third quarter of 2010, New Leaf brands took in new revenue of $1.05 million, which marked a 2.5 percent increase for the same time last year. Gross profit for the quarter increased to $404,088, which yielded a gross profit margin of 38.4 percent. Link

RELIEF EFFORTS

  • Jeff Dubiel – vice president of sports marketing at PepsiCo – expressed the company's thought processes and strategy behind the Pepsi Refresh project. The program offered $20 million in grants to help prospective entrepreneurs make improvements to their communities. He felt that the program also helped unite many of PepsiCo's sponsored sports assets under this cause. Link
  • Icelandic Glacial will donate 42 tons of its water from Iceland to help in Haiti’s fight against cholera. This is the third major donation from Icelandic Glacial to aid in the recovery in Haiti under the company’s “Water For Life” foundation. Link

SUPPLIER SIDE

  • During the 2010 Supply Chain Symposium, Millwood, Inc. was recognized for its excellence in service center operations. Other nominees for the award included Amware Pallet Services, LLC, Blue Chip and American Paltech. Link

INTERNATIONAL

  • Coca-Cola India has launched the RTD tea, Nestea in that country; it will appear in approximately 8,000 outlets in Mumbai over the next four months. Link

PEOPLE

  • XYIENCE has named John Lennon – prior CEO of Pabst Brewing Company – as its new president. He has been a part of the beverage industry for the past 25 years. Link
  • Jamie Caulfield has become PepsiCo's new senior vice president of investor relations. He brings 17 years of experience to the company and succeeds Lynn Tyson. Link