Summer is coming to a close and here in Florida, we look forward to the cooler days that will eventually greet us in the coming months.

Along with the excitement of school and the upcoming holidays, parents are faced with packed calendars of events and activities. The transition from more relaxed summer days, to days where we are living by the calendar, can cause us to lose sight of the importance of staying hydrated.

As a working mom, community volunteer, and overall coordinator of chaos, I know first-hand how a day can get away from me and before I know it, hours have gone by without any breaks for hydration.

The heat of summer has a tendency to help us remember to “drink” all day long, so how do we keep that focus as we “fall” back into our routines?

With the midway point of the year breezing by, we thought it would be the perfect opportunity to check in on one of our FBA Community Grant projects ―Florida Seabins.

We were thrilled to be able to provide a grant to the University of Florida (UF)/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) and Florida Sea Grant Program’s Seabin project and to see the first of three Seabins installed and working at the Marineland Marina on Earth Day this year.

What are Seabins? They are a combination of floating trash cans and vacuums. Placed in clean marinas or other calm bodies of water, Seabins float on the surface and collect debris from the waterway and have a minimal impact on local sea life.

How do they work? The Seabin skims the surface by pumping water through its filters to capture trash and other debris as well as clean the water from contaminated organic materials. It has an oil absorbent pad that is able to absorb petroleum-based surface oils and detergent, which is found in most marinas. To learn more, visit Seabinproject.com.

“Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.” -Henry Ford

We believe in the power of partnerships because together we can achieve so much more than working individually. With that in mind, the Florida Beverage Association (FBA) identifies organizations and programs that we can partner with to help spread our message and support our sustainability strategic goals.

One such partnership is with Keep Florida Beautiful (KFB). As an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful (KAB), KFB works with over 40 county and city affiliates in our state to organize clean-up events and provide education programs. KFB and KAB work together to educate the public on the benefits of recycling and the importance of litter prevention, reduction, and removal as related to protecting and preserving Florida’s natural environment.

As one of the largest volunteer-based community action and education organizations in Florida, partnering with KFB was a natural opportunity to support our sustainability initiatives.

We have all been waiting for summer to arrive for so many reasons. Whether it is the kids being out of school or taking that vacation you have been dreaming of for the past year, the fact that summer is here is something to celebrate.

But here in Florida, summer also means sunny, hot, and humid days. And aside from applying enough sunscreen, our focus also goes to keeping enough drinks around to keep everyone happy and hydrated.

We know we need to drink water, it’s the obvious choice, but we also all enjoy the “flavors of summer” that include juices, soda, sparkling waters, and all the other liquids that are not only refreshing but sweet. So how do you refresh your palette with a variety of choices while ensuring everyone is not getting too much sugar in a diet of summer sweet treats such as ice cream and more?

Take a walk down your local grocery store beverage aisle and we hope that you will be “sweetly” surprised. The beverage industry has continued its efforts to reduce sugar, offer a wider variety of lower sugar options, and clearly label products. From more assortments of flavored water, to lower sugar and even more no sugar added options, the beverage aisle is filled with a wealth of choices.

“If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.” – Loren Eiseley

As we all know, water is an essential element for life here on Earth. From plants to humans, we all require water to maintain our health and life. But we are in the midst of a global water crisis. Not only is the issue about having enough water, it is about having access to clean and safe water as well.

Florida beverage companies understand that, and we have made a commitment to improving our water conservation efforts as we rely on water not only as an ingredient but for the production of many of our products. Over the past five years, we have been able to reduce our water use ratio by 14% and are on track to maintain a double-digit increase over the next ten years.

What many people do not realize is that the beverage industry’s use of water accounts for only one-third of one percent of all water usage. However, our industry is uniquely positioned to use our influence to impact and promote sustainable water stewardship.

Hello to all our followers of our new blog, Sips of Sunshine.

Each month we are bringing you two blog articles with the goal of helping you know more about our programs at the Florida Beverage Association and how you can participate as well as help you get to know who we are and what we do.

So, I thought it would be the perfect place to start this month by getting to know each other a little more.

I will start the introductions, and then I invite you to post and introduce yourself and your company to our audience through the comments.

It often feels like “balance” is the one thing we are always looking for and yet never seem to find. Between keeping up with work and our loved ones, the idea of keeping up with being healthy is something we aspire to but often feel we just cannot achieve.

Eat healthy. Work out. Get enough rest. It all can seem too complicated. We just want easy answers and guidance to help us get started.

But what if one of the most complex elements of eating healthy to maintain balance was simplified?

That is where the Clear on Calories Initiative comes into play. The idea is simple, a uniform calorie label on all of your beverage products to help you clearly identify and know the number of calories in a product.

Commitment to doing something has to be full circle. You cannot just have an initiative without showcasing that you are the leader that will go above and beyond to ensure success.

That is part of our mission with The Every Bottle Back campaign. We have to be fully committed to ensure success by understanding all the ways we can help keep our earth clean and beautiful.

With that in mind, we partnered with the American Beverage Foundation for a Healthy America to provide a grant that would fund the installation of three Seabins throughout the state of Florida.

“There are no passengers on Spaceship Earth. We are all crew.” ~ Marshall McLuhan

Sustainability. What really is sustainability? At its core, the word refers to “meeting our needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” And this goes beyond just environment. In fact, sustainability actually focuses on three significant pillars: society, economy, and environment. Why? Because it is all about balance. The balance that ensures we create programs and initiatives that can have real and lasting impact while still providing the services and products we rely on.

One example of an initiative that is doing just that is “Every Bottle Back.”  This initiative is a partnership of America’s leading beverage companies to not only produce 100% recyclable bottles, but to take it the needed step further to ensure those bottles end up exactly where they need to, in recycling bins, and not in our oceans or landfills.