Independents / Regional Grocers

SOMERS, N.Y. -- It's a brand-new year -- just the right time for a reality check on private-label soft drinks.That's just what Craig Weatherup, president and chief executive officer of Pepsi-Cola Co. here, thinks is coming.For two years or more, Weatherup, along with the rest of the branded soft drink industry, has watched what he called "phase one" of private-label softdrinks unfold as supermarket

byStephen Dowdell