Calories consumed from beverages continue to decline in communities where obesity rates are above the national average, according to an independent evaluator. For four years straight, the actions the beverage industry is taking nationally with public health partners to reduce the sugar people get from beverages is working, and the data proves it, states American Beverage, Washington, D.C.

The latest evaluation of a public commitment by America’s beverage companies and brokered by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation to reduce the sugar people get from beverages shows that consumption of full-calorie beverages declined in 2020 as consumers shifted toward low- and zero-sugar beverages for the fourth consecutive year.

American Beverage, formerly the American Beverage Association (ABA), Washington, D.C., announced a new look and name that speaks to who the association is — a strong, united, forward-thinking industry driving solutions together on issues of importance to the communities, families and customers we serve, it said in a statement.

The American Beverage Association (ABA), Washington, D.C., announced that the effort by America’s leading beverage companies to boost the recycling of plastic bottles saw the initiation of modernization projects in Texas, Oklahoma and Wisconsin. These projects will help more than 349,000 households recycle nearly 38 million new pounds of PET plastic over 10 years for remaking into new bottles, it adds.

Independent evaluator Keybridge LLC released its annual report on progress toward a nationwide goal, set by the beverage industry and the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, to reduce the calories and sugar Americans get from beverages. The report noted that 2019 saw the largest single-year reduction in calorie consumption and the third consecutive year of declines since the launch of the initiative.

The American Beverage Association (ABA), Washington, D.C., announced it has joined the newly formed U.S. Plastics Pact as a Not-for-Profit Founding Activator. In this role, ABA will provide leadership in the transition to the circular economy for plastics and work with pact stakeholders to promote its acceleration, the association says. 

America’s leading beverage companies — The Coca-Cola Co., Keurig Dr Pepper and PepsiCo — announced the launch of the Every Bottle Back initiative, an effort to reduce the industry’s use of new plastic by making significant investments to improve the collection of the industry’s valuable plastic bottles so they can be made into new bottles.