A trip down your local supermarket’s beverage aisle looks very different today than it did just a few years ago.

More choices with less sugar crowd every shelf. Now, sparkling waters and flavored waters are found in abundance and their number are growing. Nearly every beverage with sugar has a version with no sugar. Zero sugar and reduced calorie options have been created for sports drinks, ice teas, and soft drinks. And every choice displays a prominent calorie count label right up front.

The change is intentional. We believe consumers should have broad access to beverage choices and calorie information that support their efforts to reduce sugar in their diet. That is why we strongly support the call of the White House Conference on Food, Nutrition and Health for historic advances from industry in nutritional health that, “Empower all consumers to make and have access to healthy choices.”

For nearly two decades, America’s beverage companies have been working to expand choices of low-and zero-sugar beverages and amplify calorie information on our products so Americans have the options and knowledge to make the choices that are right for them. It’s working.

We believe that parents should be able to monitor how much sugar their children get from beverages. That is why in 2006, American Beverage launched its School Beverage Guidelines, a voluntary step to remove full-calorie beverages from schools. Beverage calories in schools decreased by 94 percent. Our guidelines helped form the basis for the beverage component of USDA’s regulations for foods and beverages sold in schools.

It is critical for consumers to have clear, easy-to-understand information on the calories and sugar in beverages. So in 2010, American Beverage implemented Clear on Calories, a voluntary initiative to support former First Lady Michelle Obama’s ‘Let’s Move’ effort. Our member companies placed prominent, calorie count labels on the front of each bottle, can and pack they produce to make it easier for people to moderate their sugar intake. 

We followed that up with the Calories Count™ Beverage Vending Program, which placed calorie reminders on more than 3 million vending machines, fountains and coolers nationwide. Even the selection buttons tell people how many calories are in the drink they are about to order so they can easily moderate their sugar intake.

As consumers became more aware of the need to moderate sugar in the diet, we took bold, transformative action to support their efforts. In 2014, the beverage industry partnered with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation on the Balance Calories Initiative, a landmark commitment where beverage companies leveraged their strengths in product innovation and marketing to interest more people in trying lower-sugar beverage options. Today, more than 400 brands have less sugar or no sugar at all, and nearly 60 percent of all beverages purchased are zero-sugar.

In essence, we are driving a shift toward these options to reach a goal of a 20 percent decrease in beverage calories per person nationally. Nearly two-thirds of all new brands introduced from 2018 – 2020 were low-sugar or zero-sugar. Beverage calories per person nationally have dropped four years in a row, putting us halfway to our calorie reduction goal and the elimination of trillions of calories from the diet.

This kind of lasting change will have meaningful consequences for communities where health disparities have led to higher-than-average rates of obesity and diabetes. We believe community leaders are the ones who know best how to address issues facing their communities. America’s beverage companies are working with public health partners in communities across the country to raise awareness among consumers about reducing the sugar they get from beverages.

This is why we have partnered with the U.S. Conference of Mayors on a grant program to fund local programs that seek to reduce childhood obesity. And it is why we recently announced a partnership with the African American Mayors Association to fund local initiatives that advance the health of communities that have a higher prevalence of diet-related disease.

We are proud of the strides we have made by leveraging industry innovation, consumer awareness campaigns and strong partnerships that are empowering Americans to have and make choices that are right for them. There is much more work to be done to improve nutrition and health. America’s beverage companies look forward to working with the Biden administration, community groups, public health advocates, producers and retailers to deliver lasting change. 

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Katherine Lugar is president and chief executive officer of American Beverage, the association leading policy and public education advocate for the non-alcoholic beverage industry.