Honest Tea

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In 2005 Honest Tea's first white teas were introduced in both the glass and PET bottle lines. These included Mango White Tea, Pearfect White Tea, and Vanilla Mint White Tea. Heavenly Honey Green was also introduced. In May, the company made its first foray into a non-tea product with the introduction of Honest Ade Limeade and Cranberry Lemonade organic citrus quenchers

During 2006 The Honest Tea and Honest Ade lineups expanded even more with the addition of Pomegranate Blue (which became one of their top-selling varieties in a matter of months), Just Green Tea and Just Black Tea, two unsweetened fair trade teas. The "Just Teas" barely hit the shelves before being named a Clear Choice Award winner by the Glass Packaging Institute for excellence in packaging. The July issue of Consumer Reports runs a feature story on bottled teas and selects "An Honest Winner", Lori's Lemon gets the #1 ranking. Sales hit $13.5 million.

2007 welcomed new investors and board members with the launch of nine new products. New flavors that have already hit the shelves include Pomegranate White Tea with Açaî and the newest Honest Ade, Orange Mango with Mangosteen, both in plastic, and Sublime Mate (Honest Tea's first yerba mate drink) and Pomegranate Red Tea with Goji Berry in glass. Our Just Green and Just Black are the first of our teas available in 64-oz. bottles. In the spring they launched the much-anticipated new line, Honest Kids, with three flavors of low-sugar organic thirst quenchers - Goodness Grapeness, Tropical Tango Punch, and Berry Berry Good Lemonade!

Honest Tea celebrated their 10th anniversary in February 2008 and also announced that The Coca-Cola Company purchased 40 percent of Honest Tea, presenting opportunities for even further growth and expansion nationwide. Five new flavors included Citrus Green Energy Tea, Peach White Tea, Lemon Black Tea in 16.9 oz. PET bottles, as well as Citrus Spice Decaf and Jasmine Green Energy Tea in 16 oz. glass bottles. Consumer Reports again ranks Lori's Lemon as the best bottled tea in its May issue.

In 2009 Honest Tea continued to push the envelope of sustainability by introducing a new plastic bottle that is 22 percent lighter, conserving over a million pounds of packaging material from the production line each year. The first few tries weren't perfect, as they dealt with dented bottles and puzzled consumers. They were awarded Greenopia.com's coveted 4-Leaf Rating "the greenest beverage company" and partnered with the Sierra Club for a national marketing program. They launched two new Honest Kids varieties, Super Fruit Punch and Appley Ever After, which earned its name from an online contest inviting kids to submit imaginative names online. They launched Honest Kombucha an innovative line with active probiotic cultures that promote digestive health. Additionally, they introduced Mango Green Tea, and expanded their mate offerings by creating Honest Mate, with two new varieties, Agave Mate and Tropical Mate. With their support, Bethesda Green cuts the vine on a new green business incubator down the street from headquarters. Sales hit $47 million.

Rachael Miller ~ Chris Galasso ~ Chris Carlino ~ Hurley El ~ JJ Vogel ~ Jeff Heller

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