John Sicher turns the tables on Beverage Digest Editor & Publisher Duane Stanford to interview him about Beverage Digest’s newly-released Fact Book 31st Edition.

They trade notes on what the data says about where U.S. beverage demand is actually going.

They dig into:
• Why total LRB volume turns negative, why energy keeps winning, and why per capita CSD per capita consumption is the number that industry insiders should we watching most closely.
• How Fuze Tea’s staying power in Spain is a reminder that so-called “failed” U.S. brands can thrive globally
• Inflation, premium trade-offs, and why volume can fall while dollars rise
• The case for tap water and refillables as a hidden volume competitor
• Carbonated soft drink volume decline vs revenue growth management reality
• Zero sugar soda growth as a proxy for shifting artificial sweetener sentiment
• Why prebiotic soda and “modern soda” create a gateway back to fizz
• Energy drinks as a new, distinct use case in QSRs and why chains like McDonald’s want beverage traffic
• Cola share erosion, more options, and the challenge of rebuilding demand
• Sports drink growth stalling and the need to re-explain “better than water”

If you're interested in Beverage Digest’s newly-released statistical yearbook of the U.S. packaged beverage industry, visit https://www.beverage-digest.com/factbook to buy and download immediately.

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