Amid the recent wave of negative publicity surrounding energy drinks, and the ire of some elected leaders calling for greater oversight and regulation of the category, consumer perception of the top energy drink brands has fallen to its lowest level since 2009, according to consumer research firm YouGov.

Lady Gaga's manager, Troy Carter, announced that he was launching Pop Water, a low-calorie soft drink with famed fashion photographer Terry Richardson as its design director. Activate Drinks co-founder Burke Eiteljorg is also attached to the project, bringing beverage industry knowledge and contacts to the team.

Arnold Greenberg, one of three friends who started the new age beverage revolution with the introduction of Snapple drinks, died on Friday, according to an obituary in the New York Times. It was known that he had been battling cancer for some time.

With a number of "zero" branded drinks leading new growth in the category, energy is chugging along – up to $7.2 billion sans Walmart and a few other key chains. While it remains to be seen if the recent negative publicity surrounding energy drinks has a significant impact on sales, the category appears to be surging to $10 billion in annual revenue...

Following the release of a Consumer Reports study that investigated the actual versus reported caffeine content in a variety of energy drinks, acai-drink maker Sambazon issued a statement that questioned the magazine’s inclusion of its Amazon Energy drink and refuted the study’s findings that the beverage contained more caffeine that listed on its label.

Kids are used to hearing they need to clean up their rooms. Now drinks aimed at kids are cleaning up their ingredients. It’s part of a broader cleanup of American lifestyles. Particularly in the CPG arena, there’s a growing awareness that the earlier the life stage, the easier it is to create a natural or organic foods consumer. And the kids themselves are aware, as well...