NEW YORK — Americans bought less soda for the 10th straight year in 2014, with diet sodas shrinking more than their sugary counterparts, according to a report released Thursday.
An annual report by the industry tracker Beverage Digest found that overall soda volume slipped 0.9 percent last year, moderating from the decline of 3 percent the previous year.
And the poor performance of diet sodas in particular led to a shake-up in the top 10 U.S. soda rankings; even though people bought less Pepsi, it managed to regain the No. 2 spot from Diet Coke, which suffered an even steeper decline. Diet Coke had knocked Pepsi off the No. 2 spot in 2010.
Coke remained by far the most popular soda in the U.S., selling nearly twice as much as No. 2 Pepsi.
John Sicher, publisher of Beverage Digest, attributed the moderation in soda’s decline in 2014 to the continued growth of energy drinks. He also noted that Coca-Cola Co., PepsiCo and Dr Pepper Snapple Group have improved marketing for their brands.
