This week marks five years since the founding of Twitter, and it reminds us how quickly innovation can take hold and shift an entire culture.

But, it’s not only in the worlds of personal technology and communication that innovative thinking is taking hold.  The beverage industry is one of the most innovative industries in the world.  Our member companies are constantly coming up with new products and environmentally-friendly packaging solutions.  In fact, from 1998 to 2008, there has been a 21 percent reduction in calories in beverages in the marketplace, as industry continues to produce more zero-calorie, low-calorie and reduced-portion products.

Also on the forefront of innovation in helping people achieve balanced lifestyles, our member companies removed full-calorie soft drinks from all schools across the country and replaced them with more lower-calorie, smaller-portion beverage options.  Under our national School Beverage Guidelines, our member companies have slashed beverage calories shipped to schools by a dramatic 88 percent since 2004.  And with Clear on Calories, America’s leading beverage companies have  come together through a voluntary commitment to make the calories in their products even more clear and consumer-friendly by putting calorie information at consumers’ fingertips at every point of purchase, including containers, company-controlled vending machines and fountain machines.

We’d like to thank you for following us here, and on Twitter and Facebook.  So, please check back with us often for more information from the beverage industry.