Emerging markets in Europe and Asia continue to boost the global
profitability of Coca-Cola's brands as two of its regional bottlers
yesterday posted optimistic growth expectations for the fiscal
year.
Coca-Cola's German bottlers yesterday agreed to consolidate their
operations under a single company to better tap the growing
potential of its brands in the country.
Spirits group Bacardi yesterday announced a $250m (€183m)
investment into production of its Scotch whisky brands amidst
increasing global demand for the drink.
Danone yesterday announced a major restructuring of its senior
management as it continues to refocus its operations towards being
a leading player in health and nutrition.
Coca-Cola's Latin American arm posted a 7.4 per cent rise in
sales to €2.3bn during the second quarter of the year, as
its soft drinks brands led across-the-board revenue
growth.
Coca-Cola Enterprises posted a four per cent increase in sales
to $5.6bn (€4bn) for its second quarter as it continues
to restructure its operations amidst changing consumer demand in
the soft drinks market.
Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE) has cut down on the amount of water it
uses by six per cent and has put measures in place that will reduce
the energy used for lighting by half.
Diageo's Guinness brand received a boost yesterday as its attempt
to go green paid off amidst growing uncertainty over the future of
the beverage and its famous Dublin-based production plant.
Nestle today refused to confirm reports that they had turned down a
merger with PepsiCo last spring, a deal that would have created one
of the largest and most powerful food and beverage companies in the
world.
Heineken announced yesterday that it has doubled its forecast for
net profit growth, with strong sales in emerging markets offsetting
slow growth rates in Europe and the US.
PepsiCo and several other soft drink manufacturers have agreed to a
settlement in a lawsuit brought against the companies alleging
their products contained cancer-causing benzene.
Coca-Cola Hellenic bottling company yesterday announced it has
agreed to acquire Russian beverage group Aquavision as it aims to
tap the full potential for soft drink sales in the country.
Coca-Cola is launching a lighter-weight bottle for its major brands
in the UK, fulfilling a pledge to reduce the amount of
packaging used for its products, the company said today.
Diageo's operations within the lucrative South Korean whisky market
are facing further threats from ongoing investigations into its
practices within the country, the company said today.
The future for Guinness's historic Dublin-based production site
seems as unclear this week as the popular beverage
itself, after Diageo announced that it was reviewing the
effectiveness of its production network in Ireland.
Heineken has further extended its presence within the burgeoning
beer markets of Central and Eastern Europe with its
latest acquisition in the Czech Republic.
PepsiCo is to step up its presence in the burgeoning Eastern
European soft drinks market by acquiring an 80 per cent stake in
one of Ukraine's leading juice producers.
Coca-Cola will market Campbell's range of
vegetable-based juice brands in North America as it moves to
expand its presence in the non-carbonated drinks market.
Coca-Cola today pledged to overhaul how it uses water
throughout its operations and bottling franchises in a drive for
greater environmental sustainability.
A former Coca-Cola worker was sentenced to eight years in prison
this week for stealing and attempting to sell Coca-Cola trade
secrets to its rival, PepsiCo.
Consumers do heed messages advising them to drink alcohol
responsibly, says a survey by Guinness maker Diageo, as it launches
a series of television adverts in the UK.
Diageo approached SABMiller to discuss carving up fellow alcoholic
drinks giant, Scottish & Newcastle, adding to speculation over
industry consolidation.
In the first of a new series of exclusive interviews, Professor Peter van Bladeren, Nestlé's director of science and research, tells Stephen Daniells how collaboration is key to innovation at the Nestlé Research Center.
Beverage giant Coca-Cola has started the year on a high, posting
its strongest first quarter results in half a decade due to growth
in key international markets.
Heineken has landed the seventh largest fine ever handed out by EU
competition authorities, for a beer cartel it operated with other
brewers, including Grolsch and InBev.
Plans to cut 3,500 jobs in a restructuring drive at Coca-Cola's
main bottling arm may lead to widespread industrial action in the
US, warned a prominent union for soft drinks sector workers.
The ongoing spat between French giant Danone and Chinese
business partner Wahaha is no longer a laughing matter with the
multinational threatening to go to the court over the disagreement.
Coca-Cola North America has announced its plans to launch Diet Coke
Plus, a carbonated calorie-free beverage with the added value of
vitamins and minerals, that could put the concept of functionality
at the front line of the soft...
Carlsberg has acquired a 10 per cent stake in Vietnam's second
largest brewer as it looks to increase its market share in the
country's growing beer market.
Drinks giant PepsiCo is to disclose the caffeine content on cans
and bottles of its flagship soda Pepsi, a move that comes amidst
mounting debate surrounding the substance.
Coca-Cola's Australasian bottler may offload its operations in
Korea, as it reviews its operations in the country amidst declining
sales of its brands, due to consumer health concerns.
France's Danone must pay a €42m fine for its role in a cartel in
Belgium, an EU court has ruled, backing Commission plans to get
tough on repeat offenders.
Drinks giants Coca-Cola and Nestlé have this week been officially
slapped with a lawsuit for claiming their new Enviga energy drink
can help consumers burn off calories.
Drinks giant Diageo has announced the creation of a combined
regional hub for its Asian Pacific operations as it looks to
increase its focus on distributing its brands in the region.
Drinks firm Diageo has teamed up with an Irish baker to put its
iconic Guinness drink into bread, part of a move to expand the
brand into a wider range of foods.
A blended whisky owned by drinks group Diageo has been crowned the
best Scotch in the world, but consumers in Britain were unlikely to
get a sniff, according to judge Jim Murray.
Australia's biggest soft drinks maker Coca-Cola Amatil has expanded
its alcoholic beverages portfolio through a new agreement with
premium spirits distributor Maxxium.
