Content about beverage

CHICAGO — Health and wellness not only is the most compelling trend in today’s consumer packaged goods environment, but it also is among the hardest on which to capitalize, noted IRI Consulting in its new executive briefing, “What’s in Store for Health & Wellness.” Growth trends indicate that a number of products with individual health and wellness claims have recently experienced declining sales; however, there is evidence that products providing a holistic approach that advances general health and well being are gaining market traction. 

SEATTLE — Jones Soda Co., a beverage company known for its colorful sodas and customer-designed packaging, announced the launch of Natural Jones Soda.

The Natural Jones Soda product line is sweetened with a proprietary blend of natural sweeteners including pure cane sugar, organic agave syrup and stevia. Each 12-ounce glass bottle contains 30 calories, five grams of fiber and five grams of sugar and comes in four fruit flavors: Green Apple, Orange Mango, Cherry and Lemon Lime.

ATLANTA — Coke Zero has seen double-digit sales growth over the last five years, according to the company, and Coke is hoping to increase those numbers even more this summer with the release of Caffeine Free Coke Zero.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Red Diamond on Monday announced it will be offering coffee and tea in single-serve format for home or on the go leveraging LBP Manufacturing's UpShot Solution.

NEW YORK — Virgo on Monday announced the finalists of its inaugural Insights Awards, to be awarded May 1 at the SupplySide MarketPlace opening presentation at the Jacob Javits Center here. 

NEW YORK — In an exclusive sit down with Adweek, Amy Spiridakis, director of marketing for Diet Pepsi, spoke about recent rebranding efforts from the beverage maker, a new limited-edition can design for Diet Pepsi and an exclusive partnership with Target coming up in May.

ROCKVILLE, Md. — Walmart and Target are ramping up offerings of private-label products directed at multicultural and health-conscious consumers, according to a new study.

The findings were part of a study by market research firm Packaged Facts on mass merchandisers, "The Supercenter Grocery Shopper: U.S. Consumer Patterns at Walmart, Target, Meijer and Fred Meyer." The report noted that mass merchandisers in recent years have marketed private-label food and beverage products that rival those of national brands in price, value and quality.

BENICIA, Calif. — CytoSport, a sports nutrition company and parent company of the Muscle Milk brand, announced today it has launched a new Peach Mango flavor in its Muscle Milk Light 14-oz. ready-to-drink bottles. Peach Mango is the first Muscle Milk Light beverage option that is naturally flavored and sweetened with stevia, monk fruit and cane sugar.

NEW YORK — Glaceau, a Coca-Cola brand and maker of Vitaminwater and Smartwater, is injecting a little sparkle into its lineup with new Fruitwater.

PURCHASE, N.Y. — PepsiCo is testing the waters of a new beverage segment with Kickstart, a new breakfast drink that's a mix of Mountain Dew and 5% real fruit juice. The beverage comes in two flavors, orange citrus and fruit punch, and has 80 calories per 16-oz. can, about half the calories found in a typical soda.

So far, Kickstart is being positioned as an alternative to coffee or juice, and not as an energy drink.

WASHINGTON — The Council for Responsible Nutrition on Tuesday announced the addition of six new members, including voting members Evolva Nutrition and NutraGenesis and associate members American Nurse Practitioner Foundation, HFL Sport Science, Intertek Cantox and Loeb & Loeb.  

Evolva Nutrition recently acquired the rights to the resveratrol business formerly owned by Fluxome Science A/S in Denmark. NutraGenesis is a provider of proprietary, branded nutraceutical ingredients that are designed for the dietary supplement, food and beverage marketplaces.

PLANO, Texas — Dr Pepper Snapple Group reported $629 million in profits for fiscal year 2012, up from $606 million in 2011, the beverage maker said Thursday.

Profits for the fourth quarter were $170 million, compared with $166 million in fourth quarter 2011, driven by fiscal year 2012 sales of $5.99 billion and fourth-quarter sales of $1.48 billion, compared with $5.9 billion and $1.46 billion in 2011, respectively.