KANSAS CITY – Red Bull, Monster Beverage and PepsiCo’s Rockstar business may dominate the market for energy products, but smaller marketers are bringing innovation to the category to capture a share of the consumer’s need for a boost. During the past year several companies have introduced new products with formulations that include tapioca and mushrooms.
This past December, an organic energy beverage called Oca was introduced nationwide. The beverage is formulated with carbonated water, tapioca syrup, agave syrup, gum acacia, citric acid, natural flavor, stevia and caffeine from green coffee. The product was developed through a partnership between the beverage company Beliv and Magnus media, a media venture owned by the entertainer Marc Anthony.
“Our goal is to develop cutting-edge beverages,” said Carlos Sluman, chief executive officer of Beliv. “When we forged this alliance, we knew that Magnus was the perfect complementary team, not only to make a difference in the beverage industry, but to offer refreshing, exciting and tasteful products to all consumers seeking an authentic brand experience in the world of health and wellness.”
The beverage startup heywell also has entered the category with two energy-centric varieties of its namesake brand. The Energy + Focus sparkling strawberry lemon drink and the Energy + Immunity sparkling grapefruit drink include ashwagandha and caffeine from organic green coffee beans, designed to deliver a boost in the morning or afternoon, according to the company.
“Our goal is to create a sparkling water that tastes like it has a splash of juice in it,” said Britt Dougherty, co-founder. “We did not want to taste the functionalities because we wanted it to be easy to incorporate into people’s lives.”
Click the slideshow to learn about the latest energy concepts.