Rhythm Sparkling Hemp Beverages is expanding its Northeast retail account base by partnering with Bronx-based food and beverage distributor Tufo’s Wholesale Foods. 

Tufo’s Wholesale Foods is a family-owned food service distributor that’s served the New York Metro area since 1929. Tufo distributes more than 3,000 food products directly from manufacturers across the country to supply to restaurants, bagel shops, country clubs, delis, and bakeries. 

"As seasoned professionals in food distribution, we’ve seen many trends come and go, but we believe CBD is not a fad and is here to stay,” said Steve Rapillo, president of Tufo Foods. “Rhythm’s beverages are truly unique and delicious, and we’re thrilled to add them to our portfolio.”

Rhythm will be the only hemp-infused beverage Tufo carries alongside popular mainstream beverage brands like Gatorade, Tropicana, Vitamin Water and Ocean Spray. The Tri-State area has been a key market for Rhythm since its launch, and the partnership with Tufo will allow Rhythm to scale growth while leveraging its existing presence in the market. 

“Tufo’s account base sits squarely in the trade channels that we sell Rhythm into today,” said Neil Aberman, Rhythm’s VP of sales, independent markets. “I foresee they will not only help us double down on Rhythm’s early success in the Tri-State area, but help us serve our existing retailers more efficiently.”

In tandem with this distribution partnership, Rhythm has also formed a strategic partnership with multi-location co-packer Wildpack Beverage Inc. Wildpack’s end-to-end offering includes can packaging, decorating, and filling. This year Wildpack has sold, decorated, and filled tens of millions of cans in its six facilities across the United States, including California, Colorado, Georgia, Michigan, Maryland and Nevada.

“Aligning with a larger co-packer like Wildpack positions Rhythm nicely for its next growth stage, in which we’ll be expanding both our West Coast and East Coast distribution footprints,” said Ian Monat, founder and CEO of Rhythm. “Wildpack’s size, focus on quality, and CBD beverage experience made them a great fit for us.”

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