Coca-Cola purchases 40 percent stake in Honest Tea

ATLANTA Coca-Cola and Honest Tea have completed an agreement that gives Coca-Cola about a 40 percent interest in Honest Tea, with the potential to buy the remaining shares of the company. The current deal was valued at $43 million with the right to purchase the rest of the company in three years, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Honest Tea has been around for 10 years and has produced organic beverages, which have brought it into being one of the top-ranked tea brands in the natural foods channel, according to SPINscan.

“Honest Tea is on the forefront of the rapidly growing organic beverage business, and [founder and chief executive officer] Seth Goldman and his management team have successfully anticipated and met consumer needs in this expanding category,” said Deryck van Rensburg, president and general manager of venturing and emerging brands at Coca-Cola North America. “This transaction is a superb example of our mission in venturing and emerging brands to seek out and invest in the best beverage entrepreneurs and the highest growth-potential beverages.”

One of the company’s newest products is Honest Kids, a line of low-calorie organic thirst quenchers sold in 6.75-ounce pouches, which was launched last year.