22-May-2012 - Growth rates across the global functional food market have contracted but product development remains high and companies are increasingly focused on general health claims, covered under article 13 of the EU nutrition and health claims regulation (NHCR), according to Leatherhead analyst.
22-May-2012 - The Russian vodka market faces a systemic problem with rapid initial growth amongst brands offset by declines after several years due to lack of brand equity and ‘consumer fickleness’.
21-May-2012 - US firm Guayaki has launched a sparkling-based beverage containing natural stimulant Yerba Mate in Rexam sleek cans in an ‘ongoing effort’ to reach a more mainstream audience, and dismissed suggestions that the plant's sometimes bitter taste could deter uptake.
21-May-2012 - Diageo has told BeverageDaily.com it is 'delighted' by the export success of its African sorghum-based beers in markets such as the UK, but said there would be no wholesale push to market such products abroad, although it would assess opportunities on a per market basis.
15-May-2012 - PepsiCo says it is ‘reviewing’ the Public Health Advocacy Institute’s letter to the US Federal Trade Commission, attacking the firm for claiming that Gatorade helped basketball star Michael Jordan win a key match whilst ill, and asking whether film had been doctored to show him drinking it.
15-May-2012 - Some rival big brands seeking ‘price breaks’ don’t participate in Ocean Spray’s online auctions for cranberry concentrate, but converts appreciate an ‘efficient, transparent and trustworthy’ process.
15-May-2012 - Alcoholic beverage brands increasingly are looking to connect with Millenials via social networks, as younger members of the demographic begin to celebrate their 21st birthdays.
15-May-2012 - The Coca-Cola Company is poised to test its own mid-calorie sodas in the US using Sprite and Fanta using natural sweeteners including Cargill's stevia brand, hot on the heels of PepsiCo’s mid-calorie cola launch Pepsi NEXT.
14-May-2012 - US beer consumers sprung a crafty surprise in an influential 2012 research poll by Harris Interactive, reporting higher satisfaction levels with smaller craft brands and below average scores for mainstream beers such as Budweiser and Coors.
14-May-2012 - UK volume sales of fruit juices and dilutables fell last year, according to a new report from the British Soft Drinks Association (BSDA) but carbonates, smoothies and sports drinks all saw growth.
10-May-2012 - Diageo has ‘apologised unreservedly’ after Scottish independent BrewDog accused it of ‘overbearing and blackmailing behaviour’ in leaning on a judging panel to prevent its smaller rival from winning an award.
09-May-2012 - Red Bull is launching a new variant of its eponymous energy drink with no calories, sugar or carbohydrates, adding to a limited product portfolio that analysts had identified as a weakness.
09-May-2012 - PepsiCo’s new mid-calorie cola brand ‘NEXT’ risks 're-hashing a failed concept behind a new flavour', despite data supporting low-calorie cola growth, according to Euromonitor International.
30-Apr-2012 - Europe’s food and drink industry has tipped its decade-long downward export balance; a shift defined by strong export figures underpinned by emerging market demands, according to FoodDrinkEurope.
27-Apr-2012 - Sales of new mid-calorie cola Pepsi NEXT are ahead of expectations, while early feedback suggests it is attracting new consumers - as well as lapsed cola drinkers - into the cola category, PepsiCo has revealed.
25-Apr-2012 - Faced with volume declines in core European export markets, exporters are reassessing the importance of smaller markets with better growth and pricing, and Canada is leading the way.
24-Apr-2012 - PepsiCo brand Tropicana has launched two new US Trop50 varieties, including an innovative juice with tea mix and a red orange juice with 50% less sugar and calories.
24-Apr-2012 - Symphony IRI has identified 'rising stars' among US beverage brands that add excitement ‘throughout the day’, while it said the single-cup coffee trend will continue to boom having set NPD pulses racing in 2011.
23-Apr-2012 - Heineken has condemned images showing its branding displayed at a Mongolian dog-fighting event, but consumer disgust and the resultant media furore shows that viral web ‘branding’ is like a nuclear bomb, undeniably effective but with unpredictable and sometimes grotesque results.
19-Apr-2012 - Despite shrewd use of an EU ‘immunity support’ health claim, GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK’s) new Ribena Plus risks consumer confusion and cannibalisation of regular product sales, a beverage industry expert has warned.
19-Apr-2012 - Desperate Housewives star Eva Longoria helped launch Pepsi's new medium-calorie cola, Pepsi NEXT, during an event in New York earlier this month and said she wanted to turn "cola lovers in New York into believers".
18-Apr-2012 - Coca-Cola Company CEO Muhtar Kent says the firm will not change its Chinese business strategy in response to PepsiCo’s new alliance with leading local drinks maker Tingyi-Asahi Beverages (TAB).
17-Apr-2012 - SMEs are not bound by corporate structure and are therefore flexible to respond to market changes quickly and innovate accordingly with many eyeing the premium, niche segment, according to industry expert.
16-Apr-2012 - PepsiCo UK and Britvic claim to have 'won the race' to launch the first UK soft drink containing stevia extract by formulating the high intensity sweetener within a functional water range from the end of April.
16-Apr-2012 - A new collaborative global halal certification scheme is set to streamline the ‘confusing’ industry area and provide a realistic, clear benchmark for food producers to work and adhere to.