Review: Garden of Flavor Energy

Garden of Flavor, a marketer of cold-pressed high pressure processed (HPP) juice drinks, has added a second line to the company’s suite of products: Cold-Pressed Energy. Available in four varieties with a suggested retail price of $5.99, these products have 100mg of natural caffeine from guayusa as well as added probiotics.

Review: Harmless Harvest Coconut Water

Harmless Harvest has moved on from HPP and is now employing microfiltration to continue to avoid heat-intensive pasteurization. The company also uses a new bottle which uses 24 percent less plastic compared with the old one. What everyone will want to know about these changes are whether or not the changes are an upgrade, a downgrade, or a lateral move.

Wells Fargo C-Store Survey: Strong Q1 Suggests Big Summer Ahead

Convenience store sales of non-alcoholic beverages were up 6.6 percent for the first quarter of 2016, according to Wells Fargo Securities’ latest “Beverage Buzz” report, which polls retailers representing 15,000 convenience stores across the country.

Review: X.O.I. Gac Fruit Beverages

X.O.I. is Boston-based brand of Vietnamese Gac fruit beverages that launched with three flavors. Gac fruit, a “superfruit” from Southeast Asia, is, a relatively neutral-tasting fruit that is, at least in this application, similar to a melon in flavor and has a slightly gritty consistency.

Review: Teya Chia Tea

Teya Chia Tea is a line of chia-based beverages that were created with the mission statement “to create delicious, healthful products that are nutritionally balanced and feature unique flavor combinations from around the globe.”

Mission Driven Companies Focus of New Collaborative Fund & CircleUp Partnership

Equity and investment crowdfunding platform CircleUp and venture capital firm the Collaborative Fund announced the launch of Collab+Consumer, a new fund on CircleUp for early-stage, mission-driven companies. The fund, which totals $10 million, will invest $500,000 to $3 million per company.

No Brakes on Food and Beverage Investment: Video

In the month since Natural Products Expo West closed, food and beverage companies have announced millions of dollars’ worth of investment, from strategic investment in companies like Juicero and Body Armor to advanced funding rounds in brands like Perky Jerky and Health Ade.

Review: Commonwealth Cold Brew

Commonwealth Cold Brew is a line of micro-roasted cold brew coffees that come in a ready-to-drink format. Made in the Boston area and launching with a regional focus, the product is focused on delivering the highest quality, smoothest flavor possible.

Messina Departs VEB to Become Global CMO at Beam Suntory

As part of VEB’s senior leadership team, Messina played a critical role identifying emerging trends and investment opportunities for VEB, whose primary objective is to find and nurture the next generation of billion-dollar brands. for Coke.