SUPERMARKETGURU FOOD &
HEALTH WEEKLY NEWSFLASH!
Cola Wars Round Two: and this time it's not about taste (unfortunately)
Published on: August 7, 2007
If you remember back to the days of non-stop television spots touting the winners of the taste tests between Coke and Pepsi, you have to chuckle at the fact that now these two soda giants are going at it again – but this time fortified with an arsenal of vitamins!
The competition is fierce, and marketing claims are getting bolder.
The explosion of the "functional" (or nutrient-laced) beverages reflects today's consumer who is clearly stepping away from the brown and bubbly to more healthful choices. According to Beverage Marketing Corporation, functional drinks' U.S. volume more than tripled over the past five years, compared with just 5% growth for the total beverage category. This leaves little doubt about why Coca-Cola and PepsiCo are jumping into the category with checkbook in hand.
Glaceau (the maker of VitaminWater, SmartWater, FruitWater, and VitaminEnergy), which Coca-Cola acquired for $4.1 billion in May, has clearly led the category with brilliant marketing, celebrity endorsements (Jennifer Aniston, Kelly Clarkson, and 50 Cent to name drop!) and very very clever labels; making it one of the hippest and most valuable brands in the category. And just to make sure they aren't leaving any vitamin opportunity on the shelves, the company is also pushing Diet Coke Plus which is fortified with vitamins and minerals and has added a fiber and vitamin enhanced brand extension to its Dasani bottled water.
Never to be outdone, PepsiCo, who owns the hugely coveted Gatorade and Propel brands now offers SoBe Life Water, enhanced with four B vitamins. Next year, reports tease that their new entry, Tava, will be infused with vitamins and chromium and have zero-calories.
But with all this push behind vitamin enrichment, they may well cause even more consumer confusion and disheartened drinkers.
While the labels tout everything from weight loss, mental acuity, clearer skin, physical strength, and even sexual endurance ... the truth is that too often these beverages which can be double the price of sodas or bottled waters don't have enough of the vitamins per serving to actually deliver on their promises.
Which begs the question, do these fortified, enhanced, and alluring formulas actually work?
The registered dieticians and other health professionals that I've spoken to say that there is little substance to the claims and that they doubt that there would be any benefit to overall health; in fact they suggest that consuming these actually add more calories to one's diet than most people realize.
As shoppers see more and more of these beverages popping up on store shelves, they will be looking for the differences between the brands, and that means reading labels. For some of the brands, that's good news. But for others, we can expect a speedy return to the lab to conjure up new formulas that will in fact add more nutrients ... and probably reduce the calorie count. Some, like Propel, are only 10 calories with 2 grams of sugars, versus others that can be upwards of 125 calories.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates the claims that beverage makers can put on their labels, doesn't require companies to seek prior approval for claims – they only get involved when there is a complaint. Their guidelines state that "structure function" claims, i.e., how a nutrient aids the function of the body, must be "truthful and not misleading." When it comes to claims about disease prevention (or cure) however, these must show scientific evidence.
A fine line at best, especially since most consumers don't have vitamin deficiencies, with exceptions. A July report from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that 55 percent of children and teens didn't have enough vitamin D, and a team at Harvard School of Public Health found that those high school seniors that skimped on fruit and vegetables were lacking in Vitamin C, E, and omega-3 fatty acids; most of the vitamins that are being added to these beverages are commonly found in higher doses in our daily foods.
My concern is that those who decide to "drink their vitamins" may be doing so thinking they are doing the right thing nutritionally and replace their nutrient dense fruits and vegetables with a neon-colored drink that does very little for their bodies.
So make room on your shelves ... and let the games begin!
GLACEAU – the category all star!
Vitamin Water comes in 16 flavors, contains 50 calories per serving and 13 grams of sugars (2.5 servings per bottle).
Smart Water is a Vapor Distilled Water, won't make you smarter – the name just implies that it's the "smartest" way to produce water.
Vitamin Energy is an energy drink which contains many of the same ingredients found in VitaminWater, along with natural caffeine (125 mg) and ribose for sustained energy.
Fruit Water is an all-natural, low calorie fruit-flavored water with zero fruit juice.
FUNCTION DRINKS
Developed by a 30 year old UCLA physician, was developed from the natural, unique, functional ingredients that he used on patients in the hospital. 10 flavors (50 calories per serving and 13 grams of sugars – 2 servings per bottle) that say they can help do everything from protecting your skin, to boosting your mood and metabolism and even easing your sore muscles.
AQUAFINA ALIVE
PepsiCo's vitamin enhanced water beverage has 10 calories per serving, only 2 grams of sugars, a splash of real juice and E and B vitamins. Specifically, it's a source of Vitamin E, B6, B12, and Niacin, providing 10% of the daily value of each per 8 oz serving.
DASANI PLUS
Coke's vitamin-enhanced flavored water beverage with zero calories per serving, comes in three varieties:
Refresh + Revive: Kiwi Strawberry Flavor has 10% of the reference daily intake (RDI) per serving of Vitamins B3, B6, and B12.
Cleanse + Restore: Pomegranate Blackberry Flavor contains 10% of the RDI per serving of Vitamins E, B3, B6, and B12, plus 1 gram of fiber.
Defend + Protect: Orange Tangerine Flavor provides 10% of the RDI per serving of Vitamin E and Zinc.
DIET COKE PLUS
A sparkling calorie-free beverages with vitamins B3, B6, and B12 and the minerals zinc and magnesium. It is sweetened with a blend of aspartame and acesulfame potassium, contains 0 calories and 0 grams of sugar per serving.
SOBE LIFE WATER
PepsiCo's Sobe Life Water touts the antioxidant vitamins C and E and is a source of B complex vitamins, uses a crystalline fructose which is an all natural sweetener with 50 calories and 13 grams of sugar per serving.
And if you were wondering about the all important message from the original cola wars? Well, let's put it this way ... don't expect to see any ads touting just how good these products "taste" – this time around, it's all about the delivery of nutrients, and unfortunately in many of the bottles, they need to work a bit more on the taste.
