Levels of benzene found in soft drinks so far are not a safety risk
for consumers, says the US food safety watchdog, attempting to calm
public concern.
The door is open to the biggest consolidation yet on Britain's
private label soft drinks market, after competition authorities
provisionally backed Cott Corporation's takeover of rival Macaw.
Coca-Cola said it was testing its soft drinks around the world for
benzene, as the group sought to reassure consumers that soft drinks
were only a very small contributor to daily benzene intake.
Children kept off sugary drinks lost weight after a period of six
months, according to a new study, findings that add to the mounting
body of evidence linking childhood obesity with soda consumption.
More soft drinks will be tested for cancer-causing chemical benzene
in the UK after it was revealed some drinks contain up to eight
times the legal limit for drinking water.
Britain's food safety watchdog says initial tests on 230 soft
drinks show benzene levels above the UK limit for water, as the
industry tells BeverageDaily.com how it controls the issue.
Food safety authorities in Britain and Germany are checking soft
drinks for benzene after tests suggest a private deal with soft
drinks firms in the US, 15 years ago, failed to fix the problem.
US food safety authorities have re-opened an investigation closed
15 years ago into soft drinks contaminated with cancer-causing
chemical benzene, following evidence the industry has failed to
sort out the problem, BeverageDaily.com...
A lawsuit aimed at getting soft drinks out of US schools on obesity
grounds will be filed in Massachusetts, just as lawmakers there
prepare to vote on a school junk food ban.
Coca-Cola saw profits tumble by more than a quarter in the last
three months of 2005, underlining the challenges that still lie
ahead for the soft drinks firm in 2006.
Soft drinks firms will voluntarily ban advertising to children
across the European Union in an effort to curb public criticism
amid the bloc's growing obesity problem.
A lawsuit aimed at getting soft drinks firms out of US schools on
obesity grounds is now ready to go, says one of the leading lawyers
involved to BeverageDaily.com, as new research suggests
obesity litigation will become the next...
Consuming fizzy soft drinks is not linked to esophageal cancer as
previously thought and diet drinks may even help decrease the risk,
suggests new research on the issue.
Cott Corporation, the private label soft drinks maker, said it
would close its Ohio factory in the US next year as part of its
plan to cut costs and get back on track with consumer trends.
PepsiCo's successful diversity and faster action on health has
taken it ahead of Coca-Cola in the market for the first time in 112
years, but don't be fooled into thinking Coca-Cola is dead wood.
A new law allowing American schools to sell milk anywhere at any
time will force changes to exclusivity contracts between schools
and soft drink firms.
Sales of full-calorie soft drinks in schools have fallen in recent
years, said the American Beverage Asociation (ABA) in a new study,
published as soda companies face a possible threat of legal action
for selling soft drinks in schools.
Private label soft drinks giant Cott Corporation will have to wait
to get its hands on UK rival Macaw after Britain's competition
watchdog raised monopoly concerns.
British soft drinks group Britvic, spurred on by strong growth in
its still soft drinks range, has announced plans to float on the
stock market by the end of the year.
Evidence grows that aseptic bottling is one of the biggest emerging
trends in soft drinks production as the technique reinvigorates
sales for Italian supplier Procomac, and the firm prepares to
launch enhanced products at Drinktec...
Consumer health trends and political pressure have pushed America's
soft drinks industry to ban fizzy sodas from elementary schools,
and radically reduce their presence in others, in favour of juice,
water and energy products.
Cott Corporation, the world's biggest supplier of private label
soft drinks, will join the growing club of aseptic producers after
buying Britain's Macaw group - offering new opportunities for
health products and better...
Drinking large amounts of beverages containing fructose adds body
fat, and might explain why sweetening with fructose could be even
worse than using other sweeteners, according to a new report.
Coca-Cola, Pepsi and the rest of the soft drinks industry are
considering a voluntary ban on carbonated soft drinks in elementary
and middle schools following heavy lobbying from health
campaigners.
Proposals to put cigarette-style health warnings on soft drinks to
highlight the harmful effects of too many sugary beverages has been
called patronizing by the American Beverage Association, writes
Anthony Fletcher.
The FDA has urged the soft drink industry to review the ingredient
statements on their soft drink labels following the withdrawal of a
proposed "and/or" ruling on sweeteners.
Drinks makers looking for gains in the vibrant flavoured water
market could opt for new additions to WILD's exotic natural fruit
range, says the German flavour firm.
Opportunities are flourishing for flavour suppliers targeting
health-positioned drinks as number one soft drinks firm Coca-Cola
says it will push R&D investment in health positioned products.
The Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling company, which this week announced
solid sales growth led by emerging markets in Eastern Europe, has
confirmed its interest in Serbia's second largest mineral water
bottler as the company plans...
Non-carbonated soft drinks in emerging Eastern European markets,
especially Russia, held up sales growth during a challenging period
for the Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company (CCHBC), despite a €49
million one-off charge sending...
The low-calorie juice drinks market is expected to continue to
increase by 30 to 40 percent in the US during the next few years,
according to a report on Reuters.
The drinks industry believes fortified beverages are the answer to
claims that Americans are increasingly drinking sweetened soft
drinks at the expense of more nutritious alternatives.
China's soft drink industry continues to boom, with market analysts
Canadean estimating that continued growth now means annual
production is in excess of 20 billion litres. And with retail
prices continuing to fall and expendable...
Research suggesting a link between soft drink consumption and
rising levels of diabetes in the US has sparked fierce criticism
from consumer groups and beverage industry associations. Scientists
with an axe to grind have manipulated...
Thailand's tropical climate has fuelled the country's thirst for
soft drinks, with consumption growing steadily in recent years,
according to market analysts Canadean. Bottled water and
other 'healthy' drinks are...
Despite a cold winter and spring, Russia's soft drinks market
continued to grow healthily in 2003, helped primarily by the
booming nectars category, where consumption is now almost eleven
times greater than it was in 1994, according...
Affordable refreshment and convenience were the underlying drivers
of growth in the UK soft drinks market in 2003 - although the hot
summer weather also played a major role.
The Slovakian soft drinks market has grown by a healthy 31 per cent
since 1998, driven by increasing tourism and the arrival of the
multinationals, says a recent market report.
A recent market reports shows that in the Czech Republic - one of
the most developed markets in Central and Eastern Europe - the
consumption of soft drinks is rapidly catching up with the western
Europe average.
New research appears to absolve the soft drinks industry from
responsibility for the low calcium intake among US adolescents but
it suggests that creative and effective ways of increasing levels
of the mineral, such as through fortified...
A new Euromonitor report on the global soft drinks industry reveals
that emerging markets show strong growth in the sector, while
developed markets are faced with the challenge of market maturity.
Bottled water, new age beverages and energy drinks are driving
growth in the global soft drinks market, but carbonates are losing
their appeal, according to a new report from market analysts
Datamonitor.
Supermarkets that stock soft drinks in cans have a greater chance
of increasing overall beverage sales than those which do not,
according to a recent survey carried out in France.
AG Barr, the Glasgow-based manufacturer of soft drinks, including
the Irn-Bru, Tizer and Orangina brands, said that it is expecting
to end fiscal 2003 on a high, helped by the hot summer weather.
Soft drinks are set to become the biggest beverage sector in the
world, overtaking hot drinks, with consumption rising by around 5
per cent a year, according to a new report from Zenith
International. But while the US remains the...
Cadbury Schweppes could consider selling off its US soft drinks
business, Dr Pepper/7-Up, if it decides that such a move would
offer greater value to shareholders.
Researchers in the UK have been baffled by the findings of a test
conducted to find whether consumers prefer the taste of sugar or
sweetners in their soft drink.
French soft drinks sales will undoubtedly be boosted this year by
the summer heat wave, but a recent report shows that there was
plenty of growth in the market even before the hot summer.
