Dive Brief:
- The Keurig Kold, an at-home, single-serving cold beverage machine, could potentially be even bigger in sales than Keurig's original hot drinks and coffee brewer, said Coca-Cola's CEO Muhtar Kent.
- Keurig Green Mountain's Keurig Kold complements the Keurig coffee brewer, as the cold drinks machine also utilizes branded single-serving pod technology, such as Coca-Cola's brands of soft drinks and tea.
- About 20 million U.S. households own a Keurig coffee brewer, and Kent believes that the Keurig Kold will offer more options, which may mean the cold drinks machine could see even faster growth.
Dive Insight:
Coca-Cola has a major investment in the Keurig Kold, having signed a 10-year contract to develop the device with Keurig. Coca-Cola also owns a 16% stake in Keurig, making Coca-Cola Keurig's biggest investor through an entity Coca-Cola calls Atlantic Industries. Coca-Cola is banking on the Keurig Kold to help alleviate poor soda sales, which have dropped consistently for the past decade. In yesterday's earnings, however, the company still managed to fare decently in terms of growth, particularly in the nonalcoholic ready-to-drink beverages category.
PepsiCo's earnings Thursday, however, showed more positive news on the soda revenue front.
One concern for the machine, however, is that its single-serving pods will contribute to an already high level of pod waste from the original Keurig machine, which has caused environmental concerns. By the time the Keurig Kold launches later this year, hopefully Keurig and Coca-Cola will have figured out a way to make recyclable or otherwise more eco-friendly pods that help the companies avoid more backlash.