• 📈 KDP: Q4 Beverage Growth Outweighs Poor Coffee Performance
• 🚚 Distro: Jones to On-Premise, Betty Buzz Treks North
• 🔮 Spirits Trends: Weaker Consumption A Temporary Blip or Long Term-Trend?
• 🍩 Dunkin’: Time to Make the Energy Drinks
• 🇬🇧 Pimm’s for Sale?

The Just Ice Tea express rolled through BevNET HQ yesterday, with CEO Seth Goldman and Cyndi Ireland, Sales Director and Head of Sales for Conventional & Mass Channels, in the engine car to talk through developments with the brand.

Recall: Goldman launched shortly after the Coca-Cola Co. shelved his previous brand, organic and fair-trade Honest Tea.

Now, after taking the brand to about $16 million in wholesale via glass bottles, Just Ice Tea is launching 12 oz. cans. There are three varieties: Dragon Green (a reconstituting of old Honest variety Green Dragon), Raspberry and Lemon, each under 50 calories and labeled “Just Sweet Enough” via agave or honey.

Goldman said the cans give the brand a chance to move into more use occasions, specifically 4-packs in grocery. Glass bottles – the environmentally friendly pack that launched both Honest and Just Ice – remain important for single-serve in the natural channel and a strong introduction to the brand.

“I do think you know glass which obviously is a mainstay of the business and is the perfect entry package,” he said. “It will get you to a certain volume, but to get beyond that, you'll need to go with a more accessible package.”

Other likely areas for single-serves of the cans will be schools (he said key NY distributor Big Geyser is already presenting it to school districts) and office cafeterias with grab-and-go. There’s also potential for an efficient Club channel pack down the road, according to Ireland. 

The brand grew from about $3 million to $16 million wholesale last year, and is looking at well over $20 million this year – with variables including big chain accounts that may work out, Goldman said. 

So what’s challenging? Numerous items, according to the pair. 

❓ What do you name the company, if you want to sell more than Iced Tea? 

🥕 With snack sales from Eat the Change on the back burner, that becomes more important

⏳ The Just Ice for Honest story is most effective for Honest’s core channels:

“When you go into the natural retailers, they obviously are like, ‘Oh, yes, Honest… it left such a void,’” Ireland said. “It's a very different discussion with the national retailers, there's new buyers on the desk, younger buyers, and… we talk about the honest story, and they're kind of like, ‘okay, so what?’”

Read the whole story – and watch Goldman’s extensive interview from BevNET Live in December – on BevNET.

Keurig Dr Pepper today reported quarterly net sales of $3.9 billion, a 1.7% y/y increase. The results were fueled by segment growth in U.S. refreshment beverages and international markets that was offset by a continued decline in U.S. coffee sales. Meanwhile, the company’s FY 2023 report reflected a year of rising prices and falling volumes. 

🔎 Here’s the top-level view:

• On a constant currency basis, Q4 net sales advanced 1.1%, driven by net price realization of 4.8% and partly offset by lower volume/mix of 3.7%. In the U.S. beverage segment, brands like Dr Pepper, Evian and Hawaiian Punch lead the pack in terms of dollar sales growth.
• Net sales for FY 2023 increased 5.4% to $14.8 billion. On a constant currency basis, FY 2023 net sales grew 4.9%, driven by net price realization of 7% partially offset by lower volume/mix of 2.1%. 
• The company’s U.S. dry coffee business limited overall quarterly growth, with net sales dropping 9.9% to $1.2 billion and K-Cup pod revenue falling 6.9% as shipments declined 2.7%.

💭 “With more than 50 million coffee drinking households in the U.S. yet to convert to single serve, there is a significant runway to steadily grow penetration,” Gamgort told investors during today’s call. 

Stay tuned for a full earnings recap on BevNET later today.

Beverages are always on the move, and to track them here’s the latest roundup of new distribution announcements from around the industry this week.

🌈 Jones Soda announced it is making a concerted push into the foodservice channel for the first time in its history this week. The craft soda maker has created a new internal division to manage the channel and has partnered with Dot Foods, Green Nature Marketing and Ignite Brand Advisors to help grow in restaurants and bars.

🌱 Plant-based brand Tulua has launched its Botanical Shots line in Whole Foods stores across the retailer’s SoPac region, expanding to Southern California, Nevada and Arizona.

🐝 Betty Buzz, the non-alc sparkling beverage and mixer brand founded by Blake Lively, is going to Canada with placement in over 300 Sobeys banner stores.

🏡 Delta-9 THC beverage brand Backyard Tea Makers has signed with Momentum Beverage Partners to grow the startup business in the Chicago market.

Read more about these expansions and other moves from the industry on BevNET.

We recently published our 2024 Supplier & Services Guide, as part of the January/February issue of BevNET Magazine, in print and online. Discover over 100 companies ready to help you take your food brand to the next level. View the full guide.

What is happening to U.S. alcohol consumption and what does it mean for the future of the sector? That’s the No. 1 question Bernstein analysts got this year, and we summed up their answer. Here's the overview:

🤕 Called “the mother of all parties” followed by the “mother of all hangovers” the industry’s recovery post pandemic is one of a few temporary headwinds, along with the cumulative impacts of price increases over the last few years on consumer spending and sentiment.

💊 Other more possible long term threats, like the impact of Ozempic or the cannabis industry on alcohol consumption, have also made headlines. For the former, analysts consider it early days to understand the impact of diabetes/diet drugs, whereas the legalization of cannabis does have potential to impact beer in particular. Growing cannabis consumption is tied to another hot topic framed as a possible threat: Younger consumers' alcohol patterns. 

But analysts reminded us that structural shifts are slow and rarely happen overnight. The most bearish of possible outcomes is that declines are permanent trends, but that would imply Americans would revert to drinking to a level that has not been seen since 1960 and that spirits volume growth would come to an end. That’s extremely unlikely, according to the report. 

Read the full story on BevNET

Dunkin’ (and other coffee chains) have long offered extra caffeine boosts as add-ons to its prepared drinks, so why is the chain’s new SPARKD’ Energy -- a two-flavor line of fruit-flavored iced drinks with 192 mg of caffeine per 30 oz. cup -- raising eyebrows?

Mainly because it comes against the backdrop of multiple lawsuits seeking to hold Panera Bread responsible for the death of two customers and health complications for a third who consumed its Charged Lemonade (236mg of caffeine per 30 oz. cup).

Dunkin’ fans (Exhibit A) have been accustomed to tweaking their drinks to eye-twitching levels of caffeine via the Turbo Shot, when added to a large coffee, can deliver around 400 mg of buzz.

Diageo is rumored to be looking to offload a trio of brands including iconic English drink Pimm’s. 

According to reports from Sky News this morning, the group has hired bankers at Rothschild to explore whether to sell Pimm's, which it acquired in 1997.

The process is at a very early stage and may not lead to Diageo selling, according to an insider. The group is also exploring the sale of fruit liqueur Safari and Pampero rum.

An anchor at celebrations like Wimbledon or Royal events, the sale could have to do with Diageo’s focus on the North American market. The group will be presenting at CAGNY later today, we’ll be on the lookout for more info.