Smooth sailing – increasing market share for smoothies – Brief Article
First it was the slurpee and slushes: colored, frozen water with artificial and maybe even a natural fruit flavoring thrown in. Then came the smoothie: a frozen concoction of fruit juice, yogurt and sometimes sorbet. This has given rise to the power smoothie with added fiber, vitamins, minerals and herbs.
However you classify them, smoothies are a hot market. Packaged smoothies at retail are estimated to be approaching $300 million in annual sales, while foodservice sales are probably more than double the retail estimate.
Recently, Mistic Brands, White Plains, N.Y., rolled out Italian Ice Smoothies – a naturally flavored, shelf-stable drink. Flavors include Lemon Ice, Cherry ice, Tutti-Frutti and Blue Raspberry. Last year, Mistic’s sister company, Snapple, launched WhipperSnapple smoothies in swirl-shaped glass bottles. In its first quarter 1999 report ending this past May, Triarc, parent company of both Mistic and Snapple, reported that Snapple case sales grew 14%, led in part by the growth of WhipperSnapple.
COPYRIGHT 1999 Cahners Publishing Company
COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group
