NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES

Safeway: Safeway Select Sugar Free Spice Chai Tea

ea across the nation, Safeway developed a blend that would also meet the needs of consumers who are limiting their sugar and carbohydrate intake.

Safeway Select Sugar Free Spice Chai Tea contains only 4 grams of carbs per serving, compared to 25 grams in the retailer's regular Spice Chai Tea formulation. The new product, which is sweetened with sugar substitute Splenda, was in development for a year and judges agreed that was time well spent.

"I thought it was a good balance of flavors. It was right on the money," said Joanna Pruess, author, food writer and PLMA judge. "I'm very familiar with chai and I thought that product was very fine."

The sugar-free tea is the third item in Safeway Select's Chai tea line, which also includes Spice Chai and Vanilla Chai variations. The premium product weighs in at 9 ounces and sells for the suggested retail price of $3.99.

The rectangular-shaped can that contains the tea was designed to impart the imagery of India and includes a drawing of a traditionally garbed Indian woman in a pose reminiscent of ancient deities. The portion of the label containing the product's name is indicative of the architectural design of monumental Indian structures, while the package's deep, blue color reflects the richness of colors found in Indian culture and art, according to the retailer.

Although it had not yet been rolled out to stores at press time, Safeway executives told SN that in-store shippers will accompany its introduction, as will sampling events and special couponing programs. It will be positioned in the bagged tea section of Safeway stores.

Wild Oats: Natural Italian Soda Lemon Flavor

It made perfect sense for Wild Oats to add a lemon-flavored soda to its popular Natural Italian Sodas line.

"While uniqueness can often be rewarded, you also have to make sure you have the core staples covered. Lemon is a core staple," said Brian Albert, corporate brands marketing manager at Wild Oats.

Wild Oats' Lemon Italian Soda, a product of Italy, was rolled out in April 2004, becoming the sixth product in a line that already included Raspberry, Orange, Passion Mango, Orange Tangerine and Pink Grapefruit. The beverage comes in a tall, 33.8-ounce bottle featuring the image of freshly cut lemons under the Wild Oats moniker. "For us, it's a matter of approachability for consumers to see what they are getting," Albert said. Suggested retail price is between $1.99 and $2.49, based on the market area.

The soda is available in the beverage aisle at Wild Oats, but is also merchandised frequently in other areas of the store during themed events or cross-promotional tie-ins with items like chips, according to Albert.

As part of Wild Oats' natural set, the soda is free of artificial colors, flavors and preservatives, hydrogenated oils and high-fructose corn syrup.

"It's an absolutely delightful product. We're seeing tremendous results," Albert said.