7 Beverages Gaining Space on Store Shelves
By Steve Holtz on Nov. 02, 2017CHICAGO -- 7-Eleven Inc. is testing Soylent, the ready-to-drink, nutritionally complete meal in a bottle, in 24 convenience stores in the Austin, Texas, market, according to the beverage maker. The test is a major leap for the small drink created by Silicon Valley tech veterans.
Here are seven other drinks that recently gained shelf space in c-stores, grocery and distribution ...
1. Soylent
In addition to its 7-Eleven test, Soylent is finding a new path into consumers' homes, partnering with goPuff, the on-demand convenience-store delivery service, in 12 cities.
Five flavors of the drink will be available for purchase through goPuff: Original, Cacao, Cafe Coffiest, Cafe Chai and Cafe Vanilla. GoPuff will distribute Soylent beverages in single servings and 12-pack cases in Austin, Texas; Bloomington, Ind.; Boston; Champaign and Chicago, Ill.; Madison, Wis.; Philadelphia; Portland, Ore.; Seattle; State College, Pa.; Washington, D.C.; and West Lafayette, Ind.
Soylent is a product of Rosa Foods, Los Angeles. GoPuff is based in Philadelphia.
2. Marley Mate
New Age Beverages Corp., an all-natural and organic healthy functional-beverage company, expanded the reach of its Marley Yerba Mate with some of its major distribution partners throughout the United States.
Marley Mate gained commitment this summer for shelf space from 7-Eleven Inc., Irving, Texas. Now it has contracted with Haralambos Beverage Co. to deliver the product in Southern California. New Age Beverage's other partners also are taking on Marley Mate, including Hensley Beverage Co. in Phoenix, Folsom Distributing in Wood River, Ill., and Palmentere Brothers Distributing in Kansas City, Mo.
New Age Beverages Corp. is a Denver-based, all-natural and organic healthy functional-beverage company.
3. CForce
CForce Bottling Co., owned by actor Chuck Norris and his wife, Gena, is bringing it premium artesian water, CForce, to Brookshire's Food & Pharmacy and Super 1 Foods stores. Currently sold in 15 states and online through Amazon.com, CForce premium artesian water will be sold at 155 Brookshire's Food & Pharmacy and Super 1 Foods stores in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Mississippi.
CForce premium artesian water is bottled at the source on the Norris family ranch in Navasota, Texas, where the artesian water naturally surfaces through ancient volcanic rock and flows into a deep, sustainable aquifer, giving the water a pure, smooth taste that's naturally high in pH, according to the company.
4. Alaskan Brewing
Juneau, Alaska-based Alaskan Brewing is now bringing its lineup of craft beers to Illinois, both on tap and on store shelves.
Alaskan has partnered with a network of 14 distributors statewide, including Lakeshore Beverage in Chicago, to bring into Illinois brews made from the glacier-fed waters of Juneau. The move into Illinois marks the 20th state where Alaskan Brewing products are distributed.
Alaskan Brewing brought its year-round packages of Amber, White, Husky IPA, Hopothermia Double IPA, and the Taste of Alaska Sampler Pack to Illinois beginning in mid-September. Alaskan’s Seasonal Winter Ale followed in October for a limited time.
5. Argo Tea
Argo Tea, the Chicago-based premium tea brand known for its all-natural tea-based signature drinks and loose-leaf teas, is partnering with Whole Foods Market to launch a line of ready-to-drink (RTD) cold-brew single-estate bottled teas into the retailer’s stores nationally.
The release of the RTD line follows a successful test of the cold-brew teas in the company’s Argo Tea cafes last year.
In October, Argo Tea rolled out the following new flavors at Whole Foods Market stores across the country:
- First Flush Darjeeling: organic and biodynamic Darjeeling black tea from the Ambootia Tea Garden in India.
- First Flush Gyokuro: organic Gyokuro green tea from the Yamaguchi Tea Estate in Japan.
- Armenian Mint: organic peppermint tea harvested from Central Europe and the Mediterranean Basin.
All three flavors are bottled in Argo Tea’s glass bottle. Each tea has a suggested retail price of $2.49 to $2.69.
6. True Drinks
True Drinks Holdings Inc.'s children's beverage AquaBall Naturally Flavored Water has been authorized in Albertsons' Seattle division covering Washington and Idaho. The majority of this product expanasion will be distributed by The Odom Corp., Bellevue, Wash.
Albertsons is the second-largest supermarket chain in North America, with over 2,200 stores across 35 states. It operates under several store banners, including Albertsons, Safeway, Acme, Shaw's, Jewel-Osco and Randalls, and is based in Boise, Idaho.
True Drinks Holdings is a healthy-beverage provider based in Irvine, Calif.
7. Icelandic Glacial
Icelandic Glacial bottled water has entered a strategic alliance with Golden West Food Group Inc. that will enhance the brand reach of Bowery Cold Brew and KÖE Kombucha under the Icelandic Glacial umbrella. Icelandic Glacial will collaborate with Golden West Food Group on brand building as well as sales and distribution.
A spokesperson said the agreement is "Icelandic’s first step to becoming a multibeverage umbrella company."
Icelandic Glacial is a super-premium natural spring water bottled at the source from Iceland’s Ölfus Spring. The company is based in Los Angeles. Golden West Food Group is a manufacturer of food and beverage products based in Vernon, Calif.