The California Grocers Association filed a petition for writ of mandate on Wednesday, Dec. 28, to stay a California Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) industry advisory that attempts to provide guidance in complying with a new state law to regulate alcoholic beverage sales at assisted self-checkout terminals. CGA claims the advisory is inconsistent with the statute, […]
Category: Beverage News
Beverage news for grocery retailers: soft drinks, water, juice, coffee, energy drinks, beer and wine trends and new products.
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Posted in, Beverage News, Center Store, National
Craft Brewers Tap into Growing Specialty Beer Market
Growing demand for specialty craft beers is prompting significant upgrades and investment from regional brewers, The Wall Street Journal reports. Smaller brewers are pouring millions into new brew kettles, fermenting tanks and bottling lines, while others are scooping up land and building new manufacturing facilities to meet growing demand. Craft sales were on track for […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Marketing News, National, Southwest
Tyson Partners with 7UP for Big Game Promotion
Springdale, Ark.-based Tyson Foods will launch a new promotion featuring savings on Wings, Boneless Wings, and 7UP® brand beverages for the football season leading up to the playoff game in February. The promotion will be featured in approximately 8,000 stores nationwide. In-store coupons will save consumers $1.50 when they buy Tyson® Wings or Boneless Wings […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Northeast
Heineken Appoints Tank SVP of Corporate Relations
New York-based Heineken USA, America’s leading upscale beer importer, has appointed Stacey M. Tank as SVP of corporate relations. She will begin her role on Jan. 3. Tank joins Heineken USA from General Electric, where she most recently led corporate relations for “Healthymagination”—GE’s $6 billion commitment to bringing better health to more people. Additionally she […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Southeast
Coca-Cola Expanding Auburndale Facility, Adding 60 Jobs
Coca-Cola Refreshments is investing $99 million to expand its Main Street juice production facility in Auburndale, Fla. The expansion also includes adding 60 new jobs with an average salary above both the county and state averages, according to the Orlando Business Journal. “Coca-Cola’s choice of Auburndale for its expansion is a testament to the state’s […]
Posted in, Beverage News, National
Alcohol on the Ballot in Georgia and Washington state
On Nov. 8, many Georgia municipalities voted for the ability to buy beer and wine in stores on Sundays. In Washington the vote was to take alcohol sales out of the states hands and privatize the industry. In most Georgia communities that voted on the Sunday sales issues, the vote was overwhelmingly for Sunday sales. […]
Posted in, Beverage News, National
Anheuser-Busch to Spend $30 Million on Los Angeles Brewery
Anheuser-Busch has announced plans to invest more than $1 billion in its breweries and other facilities nationwide that will support the growth of its brands and reinforce its commitment to local U.S. communities where it operates. These capital expenditures, according to a company press release, include resources spent or committed in 2011 toward projects to […]
Posted in, Beverage News, National
New Alcohol Brand: Marin Institute Renamed ‘Alcohol Justice’
The alcohol industry watchdog formerly known as Marin Institute is now called “Alcohol Justice.”
Posted in, Beverage News, New Products, Northeast, Southeast
Harris Teeter Launches Exclusive Craft Beer
Harris Teeter revealed its exclusive craft beer Barrel Trolley to shoppers in July, discovered and delivered to you by the company’s wine and beer team. The craft beer will be available in all Harris Teeter locations in which wine and beer is sold the company said in a press release. Harris Teeter’s beer and wine […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Equipment & Technology, National
Food/Beverage Execs Foresee Improved 2011 Performance
Senior financial executives of global food and beverage companies expect to achieve improved financial performance in 2011
Posted in, Beverage News, National
Coca Cola Will Raise Prices July 31
Beverage Digest reported Friday that price increases of 3-4 percent are coming on July 31.
Posted in, Beverage News, Center Store, National
Coca-Cola Celebrates 125th Anniversary
Coca-Cola plans to celebrate its 125th anniversary all summer long with a variety of activities from Memorial Day through Labor Day. The 125 Years of Summer Fun, beginning May 8th, features two summer-long programs, promotions, advertising and celebratory packaging. “For 125 years, Coca-Cola has refreshed the world and celebrated with people as they enjoy fun […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Center Store, Southeast
J.M. Smucker Buys Rowland Coffee
J.M. Smucker Co. has paid $360 million for Miami-based Rowland Coffee Roasters, whose brands include Café Pilon, Café Bustelo, Café Oquendo, Medaglia d’Oro and El Pico brands. According to the South Florida Business Journal, a news release said Rowland’s 2010 revenue of more than $110 million makes it the nation’s largest coffee company marketing to […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Equipment & Technology, Southeast
Sweetwater is 27th Largest Craft Brewer in the Country
SweetWater Brewing Co. keeps climbing up the ranking of America’s biggest craft beer companies. The Atlanta-based brewer, which recently discussed plans to expand its production capacity, moved up one slot to No. 27 in the Brewers Association’s list of the 50 largest independent U.S. brewers. Last year, the company was the 28th-largest craft brewery in […]
Posted in, Beverage News, C-Store News, Southwest
Grocers Lose Fight Over Full-Strength Beer
A legislative effort to let Colorado grocery and convenience stores sell full-strength beer died in a landslide on the House floor Monday after a month of intense debate on the subject, reports the Denver Business Journal. House Bill 1284, sponsored by Reps. Larry Liston, R-Colorado Springs, and Crisanta Duran, D-Denver, pitted those stores against locally […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Feature, National
Consumers Want to Indulge, But Keep Health in Mind, Too
By Ashley Bates/staff writer Bubbly, fruity and refreshing soft drinks and other beverages have seen hard times in recent years, but many in the beverage industry may call 2011 the year of the beverage. Rebounding nicely this year are sports drinks, bottled waters and water beverages; soft drinks and diet soft drinks are as strong […]
Posted in, Beverage News, C-Store News, Center Store, Marketing News, National, Southeast
Diet Coke Passes Pepsi
As the soft drinks industry tries to recover from a long slide, Coca-Cola Co. has new bragging rights in its rivalry with PepsiCo reports The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Sales of Coca-Cola and Diet Coke dipped by half a percentage point and one point, respectively, in 2010. But sales of Pepsi-Cola fell 4.8 percent. Beyond the sales […]
Posted in, Beverage News, National
US Tops France as Wine Sipping Leader
According to a report in the San Francisco Business Times, the United States supplanted France as the world’s largest wine-consuming nation in 2010, according to wine industry consultants Gomberg, Fredrikson & Associates, by roughly 330 million cases to France’s 320.6 million. Of course, the United States’ population dwarfs that of France, so “per capita, they’re […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Southeast, Suppliers
Coca-Cola Pulls Sodas in St. Louis
The Coca-Cola Co. has pulled sodas from shelves at St. Louis stores after customers complained of a metallic taste. There was a slight surge in minerals in the water used to make the soda at the drink giant’s Maryland Heights plants, said Kevin Morris, spokesman for Atlanta-based Coca-Cola to the Atlanta Business Chronicle. The recalled […]
Posted in, Beverage News, Southeast, Suppliers
Coca-Cola Buys Remainder of Honest Tea
The Coca-Cola Co. has exercised its option to acquire the remaining 60 percent of Maryland-based organic bottled tea maker Honest Tea, reports The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The companies described it Tuesday as a chance to make organic drinks more mainstream. What they didn’t say is that it also may be a chance to invigorate Coca-Cola’s tea […]