BevNET Live Winter ’13 is just around the corner, and the conference will once again feature a special edition of Beverage School, BevNET’s signature introduction to the beverage business. As with previous Beverage School programs, the agenda will offer valuable information geared toward early-stage entrepreneurs and industry newcomers.
Recent developments in distribution news indicate that retailers are beginning to express more confidence in oat-based beverages. Shortly after BevNET reported that, alongside Sneaky Pete’s line of oat-based drinks, Target will include Oatworks in its emerging brands test, FreshDirect announced on Thursday that it will also carry the Oatworks line.
Honest Tea is facing a proposed class action lawsuit which alleges that the company is dishonestly marketing Honey Green Tea because the beverage doesn’t contain the amount of antioxidants that it lists on the label. The lawsuit accuses the Coca-Cola-owned company of misleading consumers about the actual amount of “antioxidants green tea flavonoids” in the product.
Researchers shared their insights on what they termed the misinformation, research gaps and potential benefits of caffeinated products during a webcast hosted by the Institute of Food Technologists earlier this week titled The Buzz on Caffeine: New Developments in Safety, Regulation and Adverse Event Reporting.
We’ve released the preliminary agenda for BevNET Live Winter ’13, and it’s packed with veteran and expert presentations and panel discussions on the most critical aspects and trends affecting the beverage industry today. The two-day conference will feature a wide range of topics including current data insights from IRI and SPINS, deep dives on capital investment and consumer acquisition, and new distribution and retail opportunities.
Fred, a bottled water brand that comes in a range of flask-shaped containers, has been given a makeover. The new look has taken a visual turn that makes it look more hip and relevant, and enabled the personification of the product (that’s why it’s called Fred, right?) more appealing and approachable.
An article in The Wall Street Journal by reporter Mike Esterl notes that food and beverage products labeled as “natural,” such as PepsiCo’s Naked juice, are beginning to shed the hazy modifier. Also, last Thursday, the FDA proposed measures that would “all but eliminate” artificial trans fats, a major contributor to heart disease in the U.S., from the food supply.
The premise of Dust Cutter is pretty simple: take mainstream sugar-sweetened beverages, cut the calories slightly by using stevia, enhance it with ginseng and B vitamins, and package it up in a nice-looking 16 oz. aluminum bottle. To that end, the product is a success, with an all-natural formulation that’s certainly pleasing to the palate.
A bacterial disease damaging Florida’s citrus groves has caused a spike in orange juice prices, according to an article in The Wall Street Journal. While demand for orange juice is at an all-time low, pricing could still rise because of the amount of damage to crops as well as the imminent winter months.
David Kearns, Chuck Muth, and Jeff Popkin, who are in charge of sales for three of the most talked-about entrepreneurial beverage brands in recent years, will join a discussion at BevNET Live on the importance of setting a proper plan for a company as it grows – setting expectations for the sales team, the supply chain, and the wholesale and retail community to create what “crisp execution” while also juggling the concerns of investors, consumers, and other stakeholders.
Switchel is a unique non-carbonated beverage that is made with Vermont maple syrup, organic lemon juice, organic apple cider vinegar, ginger root and blackstrap molasses. It has a pretty complex flavor; it's like a sweeter version of a “master cleanse” beverage. The product, however, is marketed as an energy drink, and we’re a little confused by the company's choice of packaging and positioning.
VEB President Deryck van Rensburg has tapped Chuck Muth, Honest Tea’s VP of sales, with the responsibility for leading an internal group focused on selling VEB-affiliated brands to bottlers and Coke’s own distribution network. He will move into the role of SVP, Sales at VEB on Jan. 1.
Hannah Crum and Alex LaGory, the proprietors of KombuchaKamp.com, have long worked with kombucha companies and homebrewers to help explain the proper steps and characteristics of this widely-unknown form of beverage, which uses a live bacteria as its base. With the recent announcement that the two have founded Kombucha Brewers International, a kombucha trade group, their roles not only become more official, but they also expand.
Continuing its foray into carbonated beverages -- and celebrity partnerships -- AriZona Beverages today announced that it has joined forces with former reality TV star, beverage entrepreneur and current talk show host Bethanny Frankel on a new line of five-calorie sparkling waters called Skinnygirl Sparklers.
