• Cincinnati Enquirer, Thursday, June 10, 2010 10:40 AM

Annual sales of Sunny Delight's Elations line of liquid supplements containing glucosamine and chondroitin have jumped to $75 million from just $12 million in 2008, Laura Baverman reports, as boomers look for remedies for their aching joints. "It is a sweet spot right now because consumers still want beverages that do more than taste good and refresh," says John Sicher, publisher of Beverage Digest.

Originally formulated by Procter & Gamble, the line was purchased by Sunny Delight in 2004 after it was spun off from P&G. One secret to its success has been to expand beyond the supermarket into club and drug stores, according to Mike Burton, Sunny Delight's director of shelf stable brands. That meant creating a formula that would last longer on the same shelves that carry supplements and pills that purportedly soothe aching body parts, Baverman writes.

Distribution now includes drug stores like Walgreens and CVS and clubs like Sam's, Costco and BJ's, as well as Walmart, where a six-pack sells for about $7.

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