NEW YORK -- The dog days of summer, when temperatures soar and consumers celebrate a last blast of school vacations, proved to be rough on the major beverage categories this year.
While sports drinks, bottled water, iced tea and beer all saw dollar sales growth, all four categories trended behind their growth from the full summer (12 weeks); carbonated soft drinks (CSDs) and juices continued to slow, as well, according to Nielsen all-category data from the four-week period ending Sept. 10.
Here's how each category performed for the period:
| Category | Dollar sales growth (past 4 weeks) | Dollar sales growth (past 12 weeks) | Volume growth (past 4 weeks) | Volume growth (past 12 weeks) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beer | +1.1% | +2.5% | -1.0% | -0.2% |
| Bottled water | +2.6% | +5.0% | +5.4% | +8.0% |
| CSDs | -0.3% | -0.4% | -2.1% | -1.6% |
| RTD tea | +0.8% | +2.9% | +2.1% | +3.6% |
| Rfg. juices | -2.1% | -1.0% | -2.5% | -1.5% |
| Sports drinks | +4.4% | +7.2% | +3.2% | +6.2% |
Source: Nielsen; 4 weeks ending Sept. 10, 2016
Editor's note: Complete energy-drink data was not available for this four-week period because of a UPC change. Wells Fargo Securities analyst Bonnie Herzog estimates energy-drink dollar sales grew between 3.3% and 5.1% for the period, continuing the category's slowing trend.
Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.