Hope of a post-pandemic return to normal this year in the US has given way to continued uncertainty as COVID-19 vaccination rates vary widely by state, the Delta variant spreads, and workers delay getting back to the office or resuming employment. At the same time, vaccinated consumers are pushing forward in many parts of the country as they frequent restaurants, travel, and get back to something approaching business as usual. For beverage bottlers within the Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Keurig Dr Pepper systems, the state of business is a...

Work-at-home policies and a still unfolding return to pre-pandemic activity continued to buoy the US carbonated soft drink (CSD) market at retail during the first half of this year. As shown in the table with this story, category...

Riding a wave of increased investment and momentum, PepsiCo’s North American bottling system convened in June to discuss marketing and distribution plans for 2022. Bottling executives from the independent Pepsi system and company-owned operations attended the virtual meeting. Despite supply issues in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the mood was upbeat, representing an optimism unmatched in recent years, sources told BD. This story is based on information from people who attended the meeting. This year...