Dive Brief:
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Bonafide Provisions has developed Drinkable Veggies, a line of vegetable-based beverages that combine bone broth, cold soup and HPP juices in a cold, ready-to-drink beverage format, according to a company statement.
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This is the first RTD product to use bone broth as an ingredient, but the company is positioning the product like V8 rather than a cold soup. The line's five SKUs include vegetables ranging from tomato beets to spring peas, contain less than 100 calories each and will retail at $5.99 in the Southern Pacific region of Whole Foods.
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“Our mission is to create real, genuine, nutrient-dense foods for all, and we knew there was an opportunity in the market to provide an alternative to high-sugar, empty-calorie juices by blending whole organic, fresh vegetables with nutrient-dense bone broth,” Sharon Brown, founder of Bonafide Provisions, said in a news release. “The powerhouse combination of collagen and protein from bone broth, plus whole organic vegetables helps keep you full and satisfied without worrying about a sugar crash."
Dive Insight:
Combining chilled pureed vegetables with bone broth likely wouldn't sound appetizing to the consumer base of ten years ago, but today's health-conscious shopper is willing to try just about anything with a nutrition claim.
Will this product survive in the already crowded drink cooler, however? Bonafide seems to think so. And the fact that this is the first RTD product to feature bone broth may give it enough buzz in the beverage space to capture consumer interest. Whether or not it can turn that interest into steady sales is the real question.
In order to carve their own space in the beverage category, companies like Bonafide and Black Cow, the maker vodka of the world's first milk-based vodka, need to be particularly aggressive in their pursuit of retailers. Premium markets like Whole Foods, Sprouts and Mother's Market are probably the best targets, as they already successfully position niche products.
Manufacturers should also use social media websites like Instagram and Pinterest to reach the younger demographics most likely to purchase their unusual products. Partnerships with social media influencers may also be a lucrative strategy to get the word out about new products and gain a brand following.