Bulk up — slim down. Eat healthy — indulge. Eat carbs — don’t eat carbs…

And so on. For as long as cultural whiplash and the companies that create it have been around, you’d think we wouldn’t be surprised when a big trend suddenly meets with its polar opposite. But here we are, fascinated and effusive as ever — this time about relaxation beverages, the yin to the energy drink industry’s yang.

First we needed to wake up, and now we need to slow down. Relaxation beverages, as one company’s founder told SN’s Carol Angrisani in a recent story, “helps overwhelmed people calm down.” What’s overwhelming us? Everything, apparently. Perhaps it’s all those energy drinks. In any case, manufacturers like Drank (tagline: “Slow Your Roll”) and Mini Chill (“feel calm, feel focused”) have developed blends infused with herbs and vitamins geared toward helping people gear down while still staying productive.

Thankfully for these companies, sales haven’t been as mellow. According to market research firm IbisWorld, the market could jump to as much as $500 million this year, after only generating $22 million in 2008. The industry is projected to grow by 26% every year.

Now for the controversy. MORE…

At last month’s Fancy Food Show in NYC, we stumbled upon a booth that is a mixologist’s dream come true. (Before I tell you about it, first let me ask: When did bartenders stop being called bartenders and morph into mixologists? What is the proper etiquette in terms of whether you call someone a bartender or a mixologist? If anyone can educate me, I’d be truly grateful).

Now, back to our discoveries. It was a small booth that was humming with activity. Okay, so it could have been the neat little bar, complete with an accomplished mixologist, that really kept the joint jumping, but after sampling their wares, I understood.

The booth was Tillen Farms. Their products ranged from pickled veggies like dilly beans, crispy carrots and asparagus, both spicy and regular; all absolutely delish and perfect on an antipasti platter or as natural and edible stirrers in your favorite bar drink!

But the item that really caught my eye was a jar of all-natural maraschino cherries, aptly named Merry Maraschino Cherries. They really took me back. As a kid, I loved the few times that we got to eat out at a local restaurant, usually lunch since money was tight, and I always, always, always ordered a Shirley Temple. As an adult, I learned how commercial maraschino cherries were made and that was the end of my love affair with them… that is, until now. MORE…

Trying to gauge the impact of a soda tax is quite a workout. All sorts of figures get tossed about — starting with the amount of the tax. How much will be enough to change purchase behavior? One study claims that we would need a 1,200% tax — an extra $9 on a 75-cent can — in order to dissuade a noticeable segment of the population.

Extreme? Probably. But a 20% tax is nothing to laugh at, either — and that’s the number increasingly being used in various scenarios and studies. Indeed, that’s the number the Economic Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture used in studying the question.

The ERS has a wealth of data to pull from. They have inside access to the federal bureaucracy and know where to search for arcane statistics or find studies that will help us figure out whether such a tax works.

For instance, it found that a survey done on food intake between 1999 through 2004 that concluded Americans consumed more than 22 additional teaspoons of sugar every day, with one half coming from soft drinks and juices.

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services has gone on record stating that a tax on soda and snack foods could generate almost $15 billion in the first year alone. MORE…

The science around coffee’s health benefits may be mixed at the moment, but there’s no doubt that the brew is a champion when it comes to organic sales. Figures released today at the 5th annual tasting event — hosted by the Organic Coffee Collaboration, a project of the Organic Trade Association — show that the market for organic beans in the United States and Canada topped $1.4 billion in 2009, up from $1.3 billion the year before.

Coffee is the No. 1 organic import, and now represents about 5% of all organic sales in North America. Organic certification continues to be a minimum, upon which additional standards are added, including for fair trade, bird-friendly, Rainforest Alliance and others.

The cup continues to fill as more roasters improve their relationships with growers and expand their roasting and distribution capabilities. Even with the recession, the category grew at just over 4% — not bad for a product subject to premium pricing and special-occasion treatment.

“This data shows that consumers did not shy away from organic during tough economic times, but rather purchased it in even greater volumes than in the past,” said Sandra Marquardt, who organizes the even every year on behalf of the roasters and the OTA.

Daniele Giovannucci, an international market analyst who conducts the survey annually, documented a 21% growth rate for organic coffee during the period 2004 to 2009, which dwarfs the conventional growth rate, which stumbled along at 1% during the same time frame.

With such a strong outlook, I’m tempted to close with one of the gag set-up lines from that 1980 movie classic, Airplane!, spoken by the earnest Dad flying with his wife and son: “I think I will have another cup of coffee…”

(Photo credit: Shayon Ghosh)

Soda taxes sound like a sweet solution to this country’s obesity problem, but a new study shows states will have to charge a lot more than they currently do before the strategy impacts consumer waistlines.

Researchers combed through data from a 2004 national survey of 7,300 fifth graders, charting their growth in concurrence with soda taxes at the time. They found that the taxes had no effect on the children’s weight or their overall consumption of soda.

That’s tough news for the 30 states that currently have taxes in place, and who championed them as a key measure in the fight against obesity. According to the study, though, the 4% average cost they’re adding on isn’t nearly enough. To start curbing pounds, a tax would have to go all the way up to 18%, said lead author Randall Sturm.

“Small taxes will not prevent obesity,” he told the Associated Press

Soda and other sugary drinks are major contributors to obesity, but they’re not the only ones, and certainly not so grievous as to warrant an 18% levy. That’s skewing our priorities, if you ask me, and you’d get no cooperation from the industry whatsoever. Everyone would just see it as “The War Against Soda”, and lose the context of the larger issue at hand. MORE…

It’s tough to stay focused when there’s so much ground to cover — and so much food to eat. Nevertheless, we were able to pick a couple trends that stood out from today’s show. They could be duds, or they could be the next big wave to hit the industry. Hey, we call ‘em like we see ‘em.

- Water packaging: With bottled water undergoing something of an image crisis these days, it seems manufacturers are finding new ways to deliver. We saw water in pouches, cartons, glass bottles and spiffy new recyclable containers. One company, H2O Box, markets entirely around its packaging, which is 100% recyclable and can biodegrade within 7 years.

- Sweeteners: With high-fructose corn syrup on the ropes, and serious questions being posed about artificial sweeteners like aspartame, suppliers are stepping up with alternatives from some interesting places. There’s stevia, of course. But we also saw lots of agave nectar today, as well as evaporated palm sugar, of all things.

- Dried fruit: It seems consumers want to eat their fruit, but maybe don’t have the time or patience to deal with the real thing. A depressing thought, for sure. But the dried options, which have been around for years, are getting a facelift with interesting new presentation (tubs, pouches, bulk bins), and some delicious company like nuts, granola and various grains.

- Tablets: Particularly in the household cleaning sector, the idea of cutting down on waste by reusing the same container has taken hold. Companies provide the bottle, along with the tablets that you drop in, add water, and….voila!

A trio of beverage reports out this week all come from different sources, and consider different questions — but there’s a common thread that ties all of them together: obesity.

Two of the studies focus on carbonated soft drinks and other sugary beverages in our nation’s schools. The first compares deliveries of soda and full-sugar beverages to schools in 2004 to those this year. The numbers are down a whopping 95%. The ongoing initiative — headed up by the American Beverage Association (and big manufactures like Coke and Pepsi), the Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association — has stressed 100% juice drinks, teas and flavored waters (though high school-age kids can additionally opt for diet drinks).

The program was introduced formally in 2006, in response to data showing that two-thirds of all Americans, including one in three children, have serious weight problems.

Against that backdrop, a second report unveiled at a heart disease convention this week shows that the increase in full-sugar beverage consumption has brought about 130,000 cases of diabetes and 14,000 cases of heart disease over the past decade.

The study’s lead author says that the greatest risk right now is to younger people, age 35 years and under.

“No one argues that these drinks are not fine in moderation, but over the past decade their consumption has been on the rise, while consumption of other beverages has declined,” Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, senior study author and an associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, was quoted as saying in a Reuters story. MORE…

Forget 2009. Really. I know it’s February, but the bad news — in the form of studies, annual reports and the like — just keep rolling in.

Case in point: The international product intelligence firm, Mintel, found that last year was dismal for new product introductions in the United States, down 30% from 2008.

“In the last decade, [Mintel] has only tracked occasional, small declines in new product introductions for the U.S. market, never a decline as strong as this,” notes Lynn Dornblaser, the firm’s leading new product expert.

The stats were just as grim in health and wellness. Natural and organic products, which saw large increases in 2008, took a few steps back in 2009 due to their higher price points. Food and drink introductions with an all-natural claim decreased from 15% of all launches in 2008 to 13% in 2009. Organic claims showed a similar decline of 12% to 10% in the same timeframe, according to Mintel.

Well, folks, I am happy to say that 2010 (and this is the part I want to write about) is already shaping up to be interesting, with large and small companies introducing new products or services in the wellness channel. If the first weeks of this year are any indication, I think we’re in pretty good shape.

FOOD: Snyder’s of Hanover, the snack food company, has introduced a line of whole grain, gluten-free, fiber-rich all-natural snacks that also promote the company’s contributions to The Nature Conservancy. There are seven products in the line, called Eatsmart. The products are also available in 100-calorie packs. MORE…

It’s no secret that the snack food market isn’t just about greasy potato chips and candy bars anymore. With the growth of the natural and better-for-you industries, people now have the option of choosing pita chips, fruit-and-nut bars, and other baked, low-sodium, all-natural versions of the munchies they love.

Supermarket checkout aisles have seen the change as $4 organic chocolate bars compete alongside Milky Ways, and now there’s another platform for this next generation of snack foods.

Healthy vending machines — sounds like an oxymoron, doesn’t it? Well, that’s what folks are calling the new outposts cropping up at hospitals, college campuses and health clubs across the country. Capitalizing off consumers’ desire to eat better without sacrificing snacking, companies have come out with eye-catching new machines that hold products like 100% juice, dried fruit and rice cakes. There are also organic and all-natural varieties of indulgent favorites, too, like sandwich cookies and gummi bears.

So maybe “healthy” doesn’t apply across the board, since sugar and calories can still be found en masse in some products. But hey, that’s the business these days. Putting apples and oranges behind Plexiglas isn’t going to generate sales, and it won’t drive awareness. You have to meet consumers half way.

And sales have been good lately for companies like Vend Natural, based in Ventura, California. Formerly involved in the traditional vending industry, president Gil Sanchez made the transition a couple years ago and now has more than 350 machines across the country. MORE…

With $5.5 billion in sales and representing 1.6% of store profits, the front end isn’t something health and wellness marketers should ignore. The problem is, how do you incorporate better-for-you products into an area typically reserved for anything but?

A new study of the checkout aisle sheds some much-needed light on the subject. The report, funded by a group that includes Masterfoods USA (Mars), the Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company (which recently completed a merger with Mars) and others, outlined best practices that might help change the rules a bit.

First off, researchers from Dechert-Hampe & Co. make the point that the front end is the one location in the store that everyone passes. What’s more, consumers typically spend 5-7 minutes on line at the checkout. In other words, there is plenty of time for the impulse itch to get scratched (as evidenced by the lines at a Costco, pictured here). The study concludes that improvements in merchandising could yield retailers an additional $2 billion in sales.

What role could health and wellness play in a successful front end? Take a look at the current top sellers purchased by the study sample over the past year: Gum/Mints (63%), Candy (58%), Magazines (34%) and Soft Drinks (29%).

On the opposite end of the spectrum, health-minded items like nutrition bars, lip care and oral care were pegged as “low penetration/low frequency purchases.” MORE…