Two graduates from the University of Wisconsin-Madison turned to the Wisconsin Center for Dairy Research to help them create a protein-rich, isotonic beverage with no artificial colors or flavors called BadgerMax.
There is no stopping the caffeinated beverage. Sales of refrigerated, ready-to-drink coffee soar in the last year. Refrigerated juices and juice blends do well, too.
While lemonade and apple juice sales go sour, cranberry cocktail, vegetable juices and smoothies rise above the rest. Unit sales of that old standby, orange juice, are squeezed.
Unilever-owned Lipton, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., introduced two new products — Diet Green Tea Honey Ginseng and Half & Half Tea (a combination of tea and lemonade).
Flavor enhancers let consumers customize their beverages. Juice makers combine flavors (especially superfruits), and tea brands go with lower-calorie sweeteners.
There are many contenders in the world of nondairy beverages and new ones keep pouring in. Manufacturers of waters, juices, coffees and teas have to continually find ways to set their offerings apart from the competition.