PepsiCo’s SodaStream has new competition from kitchen appliance maker Ninja. The Ninja Thirsti Drink System launched in late July. The company sent me a unit to try. Here are my observations:

— The primary difference in Thirsti versus SodaStream is that drinks are produced by the glass instead of by the bottle. With SodaStream and most other sparkling water appliances, including Aarke and Drinkmate, water is carbonated inside a multi-serve bottle. The user removes the bottle and pours in flavor syrup, shaking the mixture by hand. With Thirsti, water is drawn from a reservoir that is refillable and removable for fridge chilling. Changeable concentrate pods automatically release...

All non-carbonated beverage categories tracked by BD grew pricing and dollars at retail during the first six months of this year, according to BD data. As shown in the table below, all categories also posted a volume decline. Sports drinks posted the largest dollar and pricing gains, as well as the deepest volume decline (see related story HERE). Bottled water outperformed all other categories on a volume basis...

Celsius moved up two spots to the No. 3 energy drink at US retail behind Monster and Red Bull after doubling sales during the first quarter of this year, according to BD data. As shown in the table... Table included:

US Energy Drinks at Retail: Q1 2023

Sales of Coca-Cola’s sparkling water brand, AHA, have deteriorated amid competition with PepsiCo’s growing sparkling water brand, Bubly, according to new BD data. Both brands were created to take on ... Table included:

Sparkling Water Brand Performance: Q1 2023

A year ago, I wrote that US beverage bottlers saw no “competitive stupid” retail soft drink pricing, as one person put it, during the Memorial Day weekend. This year, a quick informal survey of supermarket circulars across the country finds the same rational promotional landscape, even as pricing remains elevated.

Consumers can grab 12-packs of...

Our team has just released the 28th Edition of the Beverage Digest Fact Book, detailing 2022 in-depth sales results and other data across the US non-alcoholic beverage industry. This data differs from the quarterly data reports published in BD’s newsletters because it includes sales of packaged and fountain drinks across all channels, including retail stores and foodservice outlets.

Today’s special issue is a top-level view of that annual all-channel Fact Book report. The following pages cover major beverage companies, categories, trademarks, and brands. It’s your quick reference guide to how the biggest players are performing in both liquid refreshment beverages and carbonated soft drinks, and it provides a snapshot of the intense competition in the U.S. beverage business.

For much more detail into the numbers, you’ll want to purchase the full Fact Book, available HERE. This deep 67-page report covers CSDs, packaged water, sports drinks, energy drinks, juice, and ready-to-drink coffee and tea. It includes...