• This Week's Hot New Products
• Receiver Takes Over Uncle Nearest Whiskey
• Amazon Adds Perishable To Same-Day Delivery
• Jones Soda Q2 Profits Increase After Marijuana Exit
• Taste Radio: Billions In The Can, Tallow In The Fryer. But Who's Buying?

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Poppi introduced itself to mainstream America with a Super Bowl commercial in 2024 declaring that soda is no longer a “dirty word.”

But “Dirty,” it would appear, is exactly what the people want.

The Dirty Soda trend has grown far beyond Utah and spilled out beyond the home kitchens of TikTok to take over mainstream chain restaurants, catching the eye not just of the Taco Bells and McDonald’s of the world, but also Coke and Pepsi.

Beverage leaders are embracing dirty sodas. Just look at PepsiCo’s DRIPS by Pepsi line – expanding this week to Regal cinemas – or even Poppi itself, which is teaming up with New York-based soda shop Cool Sips for an on-premise line of summer seasonals (it would seem soda being dirty isn’t so bad after all!)

Restaurants are leaning more on beverage innovation as a means to appeal to younger Gen Z consumers, who make up the bulk of the trend’s demographic base, and to compete at a time when high inflation has mounted hurdles for even established chains.

• Taco Bell’s cantina concept has served as a proving ground for these next-gen drinks, and it’s paid off so well for parent company Yum! Brands that it is expanding the line and also growing its KFC Saucy concept restaurants as well. 
• Meanwhile, competitors McDonald’s and Wendy’s are revamping their drink menus to maintain an edge.

This on-premise beverage transformation is very much a youth-driven trend. 

• Among young Millennials and Gen Z, 60% of men and 40% of women mentioned or engaged in posts about dirty soda across social media platforms, per a February report from Innova Market Insights.

We’ve also seen how powerful new flavor innovation can be on the CPG side of the business. Look at Coca-Cola Creations or the trend among energy drinks of co-branding with candy flavors, which is now gaining traction with traditional CSDs a la collabs like Mountain Dew and Trolli or No Cap and Albanese Gummies.

So, with all due respect to Poppi, feel free to call soda dirty again.

Want more? Insiders can read the full trend analysis on BevNET.

Can we call it ‘The Incredible Huel’? 

That’s not a bad nickname for meal replacement smoothie maker Huel’s verdant formal entry into the RTD space: a three-SKU line of Daily Greens drinks in 12 oz. cans. 

That’s just one of the new products you’ll find in today’s new product gallery, which features a little bit of everything… From the straightforward (RAW Nutrition’s first RTD, a chocolate protein shake) to the decidedly less-so (Mountain Dew Zero Sugar, but make it taste like Trolli Cherry Lemon Sour Brite Crawlers). 

🆓 Check it out readers. As always, it’s free for all to access.

A high-stakes legal saga has come to an end: Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey will move under control of a receiver following a lender’s claims that the company was in financial distress.

The drama kicked off late last month when one of the company’s largest lenders sought the emergency appointment of a receiver to take over operations at Nearest Green Distillery. 

In court, the whiskey company did not refute that it is in default for more than $100 million in loans and will not be able to make its upcoming payment. 

In the end, that admission, along with a number of other factors, merited a neutral third party to take over the company’s operations, according to an order filed Thursday. 

It appears that CEO Fawn Weaver may still have some leverage to remain involved, with the court inclined to craft a receivership that would “mitigate any potential brand damage.”

Read the full story on BevNET

Amazon is expanding its same-day delivery to perishable groceries in over 1,000 cities, with plans to expand to 2,300 by the end of the year.

• The move is part of Amazon’s strategy to increase its market share in grocery delivery, compete directly with Walmart and Instacart, and consolidate its grocery businesses (including Whole Foods).
• The online retailer reported it generated gross sales over $100 billion for groceries and household essentials in 2024, not including its Whole Foods Market or Amazon Fresh business segments.
• U.S. online grocery sales were $10 billion in July, a 26% increase from the prior-year period, according to the latest Brick Meets Click Grocery Shopper Survey. Delivery sales reached $4.6 billion during the month, a 36% increase YoY.

We spoke with a handful of ecommerce experts about the move. Read the full story on Nosh to hear what they believe this means for the future of eGrocery.

Jones Soda posted lower revenue during Q2 ($4.9 million versus $6.7 million in Q2 2024) and reduced operating expenses, increased net income and improved its adjusted EBITDA losses.

• The elevated income came from the $3 million sale of its marijuana-based Mary Jones drinks (the company maintained control of Mary Jones hemp-derived THC options).
• Company leadership expressed optimism for its licensing partnerships with Crayola and reupped the deal with the Fallout II television show.
• Pop Jones has gained “momentum” in the modern soda set with expanded distribution in Safeway, Albertsons, Fred Meyers, Market Basket, HyVee and a new “major Midwest chain” launching in Q3.

💬 CEO Scott Harvey said the decision to divest Mary Jones was based on the challenges of working in the dispensary channel and manufacturing state-by-state because regulated cannabis cannot cross state lines.

Catch Up: Jones Soda Exits Marijuana Business

Monster just posted its first-ever $2B quarter, Celsius saw revenue jump 84% year-over-year and energy drink sales in C-stores are booming. What’s fueling this explosive growth, and where’s the white space for emerging brands? 

The hosts break it down. They also ponder beef tallow’s potential to power a fried food revival and highlight new mushroom lattes, clean-label cookies and sparkling teas.

Tune into the episode here. 

Also available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.