PepsiCo will begin transitioning fast-growing fitness energy drink brand Celsius into its US bottling network during the fourth quarter, according to a PepsiCo letter to bottlers yesterday. PepsiCo had announced...

Some independent Pepsi bottlers in the US may be unable to distribute Bang Energy for Vital Pharmaceuticals (VPX) following PepsiCo’s and VPX’s decision to sever ties by the end of this year. Bottlers...

Keith Villa, the PhD brewmaster who created Blue Moon almost three decades ago
for Coors Brewing, is credited with using that beer to help introduce scores of consumers to more flavorful craft brews. Blue Moon was a gateway brew for light beer drinkers who would eventually consume everything from IPAs to Saisons as craft beer went mainstream during 2000s. In recent years, Villa has been toiling away on his latest gateway project: cannabis- infused and alcohol-free beers. Villa’s company, Ceria Brewing, relaunched its beers with
a new look this month after first introducing the brand in 2018. Villa uses a proprietary process to get Ceria’s beers to 0.0% ABV. Ceria’s lineup includes a Belgian-style white ale called Grainwave (Villa’s latest Blue Moon) and an IPA called Indiewave. Versions of these alcohol-free beers with psychoactive THC and non-psychoactive CBD are available at licensed marijuana dispensaries in Colorado and California, where the recreational use of cannabis is permitted. The beers have less than 100 calories per 12-oz can. A six-pack of Ceria’s alcohol- free beer sells for about $10. THC versions sell at regulated cannabis dispensaries for about $6 - $8 per can, plus taxes. Given the growing interest in low- and no-alcohol beers and cannabis-infused beverages, BD took the opportunity to discuss both segments with Villa, who runs the company with his wife Jodi Villa, who is CEO. The following has been edited for length and clarity...

The legal rancor in recent years involving Bang Energy and Monster Energy took a surprising turn last week after a California court filing revealed an arbitrator’s $175 million ruling against Bang maker Vital Pharmaceuticals (VPX). The development has implications as well for Bang Energy distributor PepsiCo.