Just a few months after the launch of its distilled water brand
BonAqua in Spain, Coca-Cola has signed a bottling agreement with
Italian water group San Benedetto which will step up the pace of
the brand's introduction there.
The success of J&B Twist and Smirnoff Ice in Spain has
convinced Diageo that RTD products are the way forward in a market
where it has been steadily losing sales in recent years.
Carlsberg's head of supply chain, Jette Knudsen, is to leave the
group in December after a disastrous summer season which saw the
company recall millions of cans of sour-tasting beer from the
domestic market.
The European Commission gives the go ahead to Diageo to sell its
last remaining food-related business, leaving the UK group free to
strengthen its position as the world's leading spirits and wine
producer.
Dutch brewer Heineken is already profiting from its recent
strategic alliance with Costa Rican brewer FIFCO. The two companies
have joined forces with soft drink bottler Panamco to buy Baru, one
of the leading brewers in Panama.
Beverage producers, wholesalers and retailers should join forces
with their respective industry associations to present a united
front on the issues of responsible drinking and taxation, says Paul
Clinton, head of Diageo's US...
Heinken has announced its third acqusition in almost as many days.
The Dutch firm will extend its presence in Africa with the
acqusition of a 69 per cent stake in Lebanon's only brewer, Almaza.
Al Ahram Beverage Company (ABC) is to become the latest addition to
the Heineken portfolio, a deal which might go some way towards
appeasing analysts who were hoping for more news of growth as the
company announced its first half...
Danone and its Japanese distributor Mitsubishi join forces with
Kirin to boost sales of the Evian mineral water brand, a deal which
should also boost sales Kirin's Alkali Ion brand.
Strong organic growth from the premium drinks business was one of
several key drivers of growth at Diageo, the UK company which is
now wholly focused on its beer, wine and spirits business. Smirnoff
Ice and other RTD brands performed...
The world's biggest spirits group should continue with its policy
of using the proceeds of disposals to buy back shares when the sale
of its Burger King unit is completed. But this does not rule out
further acquisitions.
Dutch brewer Heineken will take responsibility for the marketing
and distribution of its own brands in the UK after its licensing
agreement with Whitbread lapses in 2003.
Choglit - no, not the name the European Commission wants producers
of non cocoa-butter chocolate to adopt but the name of a new drinks
brand produced jointly by Coca-Cola and Nestle and launched in the
US earlier this month.
In an interview with French daily Les Echos on Tuesday,
Franck Riboud, CEO of Groupe Danone, quickly denied accusations
that developments with Coca-Cola were a sign of Danone's defeat in
the US water market.
Soft drink giant Coca-Cola, facing a stiff challenge from archrival
PepsiCo in the crucial North American market, on Monday unveiled a
new vanilla-flavoured version of its flagship Coke brand, reports
Reuters.