National Beverage Day

In 1921, an anonymous contributor to The Re-Ly-On Bottler, a trade magazine for carbonated beverage producers, proposed a day to reassure the American public that bottled drinks were "pure" and "wholesome." Public trust in food safety was low. The beverage industry needed credibility. By 1925, the American Bottlers of Carbonated Beverages had formalized the concept as an annual event.

That promotional effort has outlived the industry concerns that created it. The US non-alcoholic beverage market was valued at approximately $170 billion in 2024, spanning carbonated soft drinks, bottled water, coffee, tea, energy drinks, and a fast-growing category of non-alcoholic alternatives driven by the "sober curious" movement.

The story of National Beverage Day begins with a public relations problem. In the early 20th century, American consumers were skeptical about the safety of commercially produced food and drink. Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle" had exposed meatpacking conditions in 1906. The Pure Food and Drug Act followed the same year. Bottled carbonated beverages, still a relatively new consumer product, needed to distance themselves from the era's food safety scandals.

In 1921, a writer for The Re-Ly-On Bottler, a trade publication for carbonated beverage manufacturers, proposed a promotional day to assure the public that bottled drinks were "pure" and "wholesome." By 1925, the American Bottlers of Carbonated Beverages had declared it an annual event, initially scheduled for the first Wednesday of May.

From fizzy water to a $170 billion industry

The scientific foundation was laid in 1767, when English chemist Joseph Priestley discovered that water could be infused with carbon dioxide by suspending it above a beer vat. Johann Jacob Schweppe commercialized the process in 1783. By the late 19th century, pharmacist-inventors were adding flavored syrups to carbonated water — Coca-Cola in 1886, Pepsi-Cola in 1893.

Prohibition (1920-1933) transformed the non-alcoholic beverage industry. With alcohol banned, Americans turned to soft drinks, coffee, and tea. Coca-Cola's market position strengthened dramatically during this period, and the habit of reaching for a carbonated drink instead of a beer outlasted the 18th Amendment.

The modern landscape

The US non-alcoholic beverage market reached approximately $170 billion in 2024. Carbonated soft drinks account for $55.2 billion, bottled water $47 billion, coffee $28.1 billion, and energy drinks $23.9 billion. In 2024, Dr Pepper tied Pepsi as the second most popular soda in America, each holding 8.3% market share behind Coca-Cola's 19.2%.

The energy drink category barely existed before 1997, when Red Bull entered the US market. Dietrich Mateschitz had adapted a Thai tonic called Krating Daeng into a carbonated drink marketed toward extreme sports athletes and exhausted professionals. Monster Energy and 5-hour Energy followed. By 2024, the category had grown to nearly $24 billion.

The sober curious shift

The latest transformation in the beverage industry is being driven by consumers who are choosing not to drink alcohol. Nearly half of Americans planned to drink less alcohol in 2025, a 44% increase from 2023. The shift is led by Gen Z and Millennials, and it has created a market for non-alcoholic beer, wine, and spirits projected to reach $5 billion by 2028. National Beverage Day now encompasses a far wider range of drinks than the carbonated sodas its founders set out to promote.