First, SDBC announced the test market launch of FruitSimple, a new 100% juice smoothie designed to provide two full servings of fruit in every 8oz glass. FruitSimple is in test market in Arizona and is being launched nationally in Spain, the company's second largest market. This new product comes in a variety of contemporary flavors -- like Pomegranate Blueberry and Orange Mango -- and can be found in the dairy case where other juices are purchased.

"FruitSimple is really simple," said Rick Zimmerman, senior vice president of marketing and innovation. "Our consumers are having trouble getting their families -- particularly their kids -- to consume enough fruits and vegetables every day. Our goal is to make that easier by providing two full servings in one 8 ounce bottle -- and have them like it. We think we have achieved that with FruitSimple," added Zimmerman

SDBC's second effort is a major investment in a new manufacturing system capable of producing high-quality, fresh-tasting beverages without any preservatives. The company has selected equipment from Krones AG, a supplier of beverage packing lines, to produce the new packing line. The line will be installed in the company's plant in South Brunswick, N.J., and will be operational in early 2008.

"Our job is to meet the rising expectations of consumers for fresher-tasting and more wholesome products," said Ellen Iobst, senior vice president of manufacturing and technology. "This investment will allow us to do that by giving us a state of the art packing line that can produce very high-quality, fresh-tasting beverages with extended shelflives and no preservatives. Very few companies in the U.S. have this capability, and we are proud to be among the pioneers in this area," stated Iobst.

Designing, installing, starting up and running these sophisticated manufacturing lines requires a high degree of technical skill. Iobst added, "This investment also represents the high level of confidence we have in the technical skills of our employees-skills we want to leverage to build our business."

The company views these initiatives as two significant steps in its efforts to meet the consumer's desire for more wholesome products and is working on several other efforts in the marketing and new product areas. These efforts will help the company accelerate its rate of growth and increase its relevance to both customers and consumers.

From the July 30, 2007, Prepared Foods e-Flash