BD attended the Natural Products Expo West show last week at the Anaheim Convention Center & Arena outside Los Angeles. The event has become a showcase for products capitalizing on consumer health trends, which often evolve to mainstream appeal and drive acquisitions by large consumer products companies. Food and beverage offerings as usual dominated the show, which included more than 3,500 exhibitors spread across the equivalent of almost 10 football fields. Here’s an analysis of beverage themes and trends that emerged from this year’s show:

Last August, Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated named Dave Katz president and COO. He spent 25 years preparing for the role. BD spoke to Katz about refranchising, competition with a reorganized PepsiCo beverages unit, methods to fuel revenue growth and even CBD.

Monster Results. On Feb. 27, Monster Beverage reported better than expected fourth-quarter results as international sales jumped +30%. Revenue rose +15%, with the U.S. up

There were no valentines exchanged between Coca-Cola and investors on Feb. 14 after the company offered a cautious full-year 2019 earnings forecast. Coke shares declined more than