• 🍸 Constellation Offloads Svedka
• 🟢 Frequent Flyer Nutrition
• 🎄 Zevia vs. A.I. Holiday Ad Campaign
• 💰 TurtleTree Raising $15M Round
• 🌎 Coke Updates Environmental Goals
• 👊 Prime & Messi’s Mas+ Do Battle. Who Benefits? Plus, We Dip & Bake.

With new beverages constantly hitting the shelves, the competition is fierce! No matter what kind of beverage product, Tetra Pak can help you succeed. With best-in-class drink packaging, we can advise you with solutions that will compel consumers to pick your product first. Learn more

Cannabis products maker oHHo is seeing (RED). 

The New York-based startup, a producer of hemp-derived THC seltzers and other various cannabinoid-infused tinctures and edibles, has partnered with international healthcare non-profit (RED) which is focused on fighting AIDS, malaria and other diseases worldwide.

It’s a big first for the charity to link with a cannabis brand, but oHHo founders James and Nicola Stephenson told us that their focus on wellness and the therapeutic benefits of cannabinoids won the approval of (RED)’s leadership. The collaboration launched online this morning with a new roster of co-branded products, dubbed “(oHHo) RED,” including a delta-9 THC seltzer, chocolate bars and gummies. Twenty percent of all sales will go toward’s (RED)’s medical support mission.

While cannabis collaborations mark a new frontier for an established charity like (RED) – the group was founded in 2006 by politician Bobby Shriver and Bono (you know who he is!) – social advocacy on the cannabis side has been a significant pillar of the industry for some time. Efforts have spanned long-ingrained initiatives like reform for anti-drug laws and the release of prisoners sentenced for non-violent drug offenses to more recent efforts to promote political engagement.

Giving back is also a key piece of the mainstreaming of cannabis and the growing effort of the industry to normalize and integrate the drug – which, reminder, is still federally illegal – into everyday life. Here’s just a few other recent examples.

• In October, a number of cannabis brands including Curaleaf, Betty’s Eddies and Blazy Susan released Breast Cancer Awareness products with proceeds going to charity.
• That same month, New Mexico-based PurLife Dispensary announced a “Light Up the Vote” campaign tied to the presidential election, playing to both sides of the aisle with limited edition flower strains Donald OG and Kamala Kush. The dispensary said it sought to “spark enthusiasm for voting” and “remind us that every voice matters.”
• And just last week, Beard Bros Pharms – a self-described cannabis brand, “advocacy and consulting firm, and grassroots media magnate” called out President Joe Biden for participating in the White House’s annual Thanksgiving turkey pardon event while failing to respond to more than 16,000 clemency requests from incarcerated prisoners.

BevNET Insiders can read the full story to learn more about the partnership between oHHo and (RED).

It's a newsy week for vodka: After the U.S. arm of Stoli Group filed for bankruptcy, Constellation Brands has announced an agreement with spirits giant Sazerac to sell its Svedka Vodka brand.

✨ The sale, which is expected to close “in the coming months,” is part of Constellation’s plan to premiumize its wine and spirits business, which have not kept pace with the gains its beer portfolio of Mexican imports has delivered.

🍷 Constellation’s wine and spirits division recorded a 9.8% decline in shipments (sales to wholesalers) during the Q2 of FY25, and Svedka’s trends have softened slightly in the last four weeks, falling behind Absolut as the No. 8 vodka.

🔥 But Sazerac isn't afraid of taking on troubled brands: Sazerac CEO Jake Wenz described recently how the company acquired a then-struggling Fireball Whisky, now one of the top five spirit brands. 

BevNET Insiders can access the full story for all of the details.

At BevNET Live, sit down with top retailers like Albertsons, Whole Foods Market, Spec’s, and Pilot. Albertsons, one of the largest U.S. food and drug retailers with over 2,200 stores nationwide, operates well-known chains like Safeway, Vons, and Jewel-Osco. Buyers Kody Severson and Matthew Wirth will meet with select brands to explore new opportunities.

Register to apply for a private meeting and connect directly with top beverage decision-makers!

Whether you are an emerging brand scaling your operations or an established business looking for an edge in the market, BevSource has the resources, relationships and expertise to help. Stop by our table at BevNET Live to learn how. Learn more

AG1 producer Athletic Greens is targeting travelers by placing vending machines stocked with its nutritional drinks in airports. Company CEO Kat Cole posted a photo on Instagram of the first vending machine at San Francisco Airport Terminal 3.

✈️ In the post, Cole said that more self-serve machines are being placed in Atlanta (Terminal F), Houston, Chicago’s O’Hare Airport, and Oakland International with additional locations by the end of the year.

🧳 Each vending machine offers 5-count, 30-count and travel packs as well as extra shaker bottles.

💭 “If there is a time that AG1 is extra helpful to support nutrient gaps and gut health...it's during travel. I will not travel without it,” Cole wrote in the post.

Zero sugar soda brand Zevia has released its new holiday ad campaign, “Break From Artificial,” which parodies Coca-Cola’s poorly received AI-generated commercial. 

👀 In the ad, Zevia utilizes exaggerated AI imagery – including Santa flying in on a drone instead of a sleigh, a polar bear eating presents instead of giving them and people consuming artificial brown beverages – to highlight how “artificial things are troubling.” 

💭 “Artificial things can be convenient, but they can also be concerning to people – from AI videos without the feeling of human connection to sodas with artificial ingredients. While our lighthearted parody ad aims to entertain, we hope it starts a conversation about Zevia being a great alternative to artificial sodas,” said Kirsten Suarez, CMO, in a statement.

Food technology company TurtleTree is in the process of raising a pre-Series B round of funding, according to Axios. 

❌ The Singaporean company was founded in 2019 by Lin Fengru. TurtleTree uses precision fermentation to make an animal-free Lactoferrin+ for use in food and beverage applications.

🤝 The round is expected to provide fresh working capital for its recently announced partnership with Singapore-based canned coffee brand MAD Foods and the forthcoming collaborations in the U.S. with Cadence Performance Coffee and Strive Nutrition.

🤑 TurtleTree previously closed a $30 million Series A in November 2021 led by VERSO Capital bringing its total investment at the time to $40 million.

🥛 TurtleTree is one of a few food tech businesses – Helaina, BIOMILQ, All G and ByHeart, to name a few – developing more sustainable and cost-effective alternatives to bovine-derived lactoferrin or human breast milk.

The Coca-Cola Company released an updated statement this week outlining the priorities of its voluntary environmental goals which include improving water security in high-risk locations, reducing packaging waste and decreasing emissions. The beverage giant said it will work with local communities, bottling partners and government officials to accomplish its environmental aims by 2035. Here are the highlights: 

🚰 Water: To return more than 100% of the water used in finished products to the over 200 high-risk locations through increased water efficiency and treatment.

🥤 Packaging: To use 35% to 40% recycled material and aim to collect 70% to 75% of the equivalent number of bottles and cans introduced into the market annually.

💨 Emissions: From a 2019 baseline, the company is aiming to reduce emissions by 1.5°C by 2035.

🧑‍🌾 As part of the update, Coke also removed its voluntary goal related to agriculture but said it is seeking new initiatives to support sustainable sourcing for ingredients that reduce deforestation, water use and “conserve high-risk areas in the supply chain.”

Days away from BevNET’s winter events in Marina Del Rey, the hosts discuss the legal battle between lifestyle fitness brands Prime and Mas+ by Messi and why it may help one company more than the other, regardless of the outcome. They also sample a big brand’s take on an ethnic classic and explain their love/hate relationship with an emerging brand.

Listen to the episode now.