The role of caps and closures has been to seal and preserve the product inside. But as the years go on, that job description keeps getting longer and longer. Beverage-makers are looking for tops that reflect their brand; keep the environment in mind; offer color, printing and form options; provide ease of use for consumers; showcase innovation; and maintain product integrity and safety.
Answering consumer demand, creating new formulations and leveraging growth opportunities are among the reasons why beverage-makers plan to launch more new products in 2012 compared to 2011, according to the results of Beverage Industry’s annual New Product Development survey. A planned increase in launches was cited by 59 percent of respondents, which is a 14 percent rise from last year’s survey results.
Fresh out of college in 1991, Mark Rampolla ventured to Latin America as a Peace Corps. volunteer in Costa Rica. He also spent time in Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean and Brazil. During his travels, Rampolla was enlightened by many things within the Latin American culture, including a popular regional drink: coconut water.
Irene Firmat, founder and chief executive officer of Full Sail Brewing Co., Hood River, Ore., was inspired by the beer varieties she encountered during European travels and wanted to introduce more American consumers to the concept of high-quality beer.
Brands on the shelf are allotted only a short period of time to grab shoppers’ attention and convince them to purchase the product. Most purchase decisions are made in a split second, according to Tobii Technology, Danderyd, Sweden.
The economic downturn caused many consumers to cut back across categories, but coffee consumers have found new ways to enjoy their cup of joe. Approximately 79 percent of adults in the United States drank coffee in the last two years, according to Chicago-based Mintel Group Ltd.’s October Coffee report. However, 48 percent of coffee drinkers surveyed said they are drinking more coffee at home and less away from home in 2011 than they were a year ago — a trend that Mintel predicts will continue to drive retail coffee sales through 2012.
Consumers continue to search for ways to fit health and wellness values into their often too-busy schedules, which has led to a thriving marketplace for better-for-you products.
Ingredient show highlights range of new, popular solutions
December 11, 2011
Marking its 15th anniversary, SupplySide West, which took place Oct. 10-14 in Las Vegas, hosted 1,340 booths showcasing beverage, food, dietary supplement and cosmeceutical ingredient solutions.
Crown Imports’ portfolio of eight brands captures approximately 42 percent of the volume of the import beer market in the United States, a figure that the Chicago-based company is intent on increasing. In fact, the joint venture between Mexico’s Grupo Modelo, S.A. de C.V. and Constellation Brands Inc., Victor, N.Y., has a goal of becoming the third major U.S. beer company occupying 20 percent per dollar market share.
As the energy drink market expanded years ago, sports nutrition and supplement company Xyience, Las Vegas, saw the emerging category as the next step for its products. That evolution led to the development of Xyience Xenergy drinks. “Xenergy is ‘zen energy;’ that’s what it means,” says Michael Levy, chief financial officer and chief operations officer with Xyience. “It has a concept of healthy energy for people with an active lifestyle.”