White Wave makes a big splash with Silk; vegetarian cuisine company launches refrigerated soy beverage

Business Wire, Feb 12, 1996

BOULDER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 12, 1996--White Wave Inc., one of the fastest-growing vegetarian cuisine companies in the United States, announced that it has entered the beverage market with the launch of Silk(TM), a lactose-free, low-fat, refrigerated soy beverage.

Now available in natural food stores across the country, Silk is uniquely packaged in a traditional milk carton and sold in the dairy case.

"In just a couple of weeks on the market, Silk has already made a big splash with retailers as well as consumers," stated Steve Demos, president of White Wave. "This is our biggest and most bodacious new product launch in our company's 18-year history. Our sales of Silk in its first week were comparable to White Wave's sales for its entire first year in business in 1977."

He continued: "We've tapped into the demand for a good-tasting, 100% dairyless beverage that appeals to a broad range of consumers -- vegetarians as well as mainstream consumers who are looking for a fresh, non-milk product for their breakfast cereal. We believe Silk will bring people back to the breakfast table by allowing them to enjoy a healthy breakfast with Silk and their favorite cereal."

Ken Vickerstaff, White Wave's vice president of sales and marketing, believes positioning Silk as a refrigerated soy beverage in a milk carton will be the key to success as White Wave enters this quickly expanding market, which was estimated at $130 million in retail sales for 1995.

"We're the first company to offer a nationally distributed soy beverage that isn't mis-positioned. To date, the category has been mis-positioned, offering product in a square dry box at room temperature. That is just foreign to how we eat," explained Vickerstaff. "We hope to capture the market by providing an alternative which is not so alien, has a familiar feel and taste to it, and is easy to use."

Whether drinking it as a cool, refreshing beverage, pouring it on cereal or in coffee, or using it in your favorite recipe, Silk is a healthy, protein-packed staple for your daily diet. Silk will be sold in quart and half-gallon cartons at a suggested retail price of $1.99 - $2.49 and $3.99 - $4.79, respectively.

Fortified with calcium as well as vitamins A, B2 and D, Silk is low fat and is 100% lactose-free and cholesterol-free. It is made from organic soybeans, grown and processed in accordance with the California Organic Foods Act of 1990. The natural soybeans are raised without the use of herbicides, pesticides or chemical additives. Silk meets the American Heart Association dietary guidelines and features the Heart Check seal.

White Wave Inc., based in Boulder, Colo., was founded in 1977. Since then, White Wave's mission has been to integrate healthy, natural, vegetarian foods into the American diet. One of the largest producers of tofu and the largest producer of tempeh in North America, White Wave's line of products also includes: seitan, vegetarian burgers/meat alternatives, soy yogurt, soy cheeses and now soy beverages.

White Wave Silk(TM). Pour it On.

CONTACT: Holden McClure, Boulder

Susan L. Holden, 303/449-2526