Launched under the Nestlé Pure Life Purified Water brand, Fruity Water contains a touch of natural fruit flavors and electrolytes for taste and is packaged in kid-friendly Tetra Pak cartons with a paper straw attached -- a packaging format first for the US market, according to the company.
Flavored water is a massive and growing category in the US where sales of the segment nearly doubled from $1.3bn in 2013 to $2.5bn in 2018, according to Euromonitor International. While flavored water has proved its consumer popularity in various formats from flavored sparkling waters to functional tree waters, very few brands have managed to crack into the kids market.
“With Fruity Water, we have the ‘water credentials’ to expand beyond our core product and offer a fun alternative to plain water, that doesn’t contain juice,” Yumi Clevenger-Lee, Nestlé Waters North America EVP and chief marketing officer, told FoodNavigator-USA.
To reach households with parents of young kids, NWNA is driving home the message that Fruity Water is free from sugar, sweeteners, preservatives, and juice – which many similarly positioned products touting low- or reduced-sugar credentials typically do contain.
“It is a product parents will love to give to their kids because Fruity Water has zero sugar, sweeteners, preservatives or artificial colors, but still offers familiar flavors that kids will recognize and enjoy, along with fun and vibrant packaging,” said Clevenger-Lee.
NWNA consumer research shows that Fruity Water did well with 6- to 12-year-olds, she added.
Fruity Water is available nationwide through Amazon and Walmart.com, as well as in retail stores such as Walmart and other supermarket chains (SRP $3.99 for an 8-pack and $14.99 for a 24-pack). Fruity Water is also available through NWNA’s ReadyRefresh service for home delivery.
Fruity Water products come in kid-favorite flavors including apple, watermelon, and tropical twist.
Hydration & kids
Aside from establishing a foothold in an underdeveloped category as kids' flavored water, Clevenger-Lee said Fruity Water products directly address the struggle many households face getting their kids to drink water instead of more sugary drinks.
A recent study conducted by the Water, Health and Nutrition Laboratory at Pennsylvania State University found that 20% of US children do not drink any water on a given day. As a result of the study, children consumed almost twice as many calories from sugar-sweetened beverages – a total of 200 additional calories per day – compared to children who did drank water regularly.
When it comes to building healthy eating habits at an early age, the importance of hydration is often overlooked as a key pillar to a child’s nutritional and learning development, said Clevenger-Lee.
As found in NWNA’s 2019 national study, This Is How We Planet: America’s Perspective on Water, Packaging and Health, nearly 40% of Americans don’t realize that hydration can actually help improve kids’ performance in school, noted Clevenger-Lee.
“This critical disconnect among parents is one that healthy hydration options, such as Fruity Water, can help address as an exciting and delicious hydration alternative to plain water for kids,” Clevenger-Lee said.
Don’t miss FoodNavigator-USA’s FOOD FOR KIDS 2020 virtual summit kicking off on Wednesday, October 21. We will explore the dynamics in the kids’ beverage market during our Beverage Trends panel discussion featuring brand developing innovative new beverage for kids on Wednesday, November 4.
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