Beyond The Headlines: Coca-Cola streamlines Europe operations, UK’s food allergy prevention

This week in industry news, The Coca-Cola Company announced new reporting lines for Costa Coffee and Innocent Drinks to simplify operations and injected US$10 million into its Florida distribution center. Meanwhile, dairy firm Almarai tapped cloud computing for operational efficiency and the UK’s Food and Drink Federation unveiled guidance to prevent food allergy incidents.

Business highlights

The Coca-Cola Company announced that, from January 1, 2025, London-based juice manufacturer Innocent Drinks and Costa Coffee will report to the company’s Europe operating unit. The changes aim to simplify the current reporting structure. Costa will remain a stand-alone business and its ready-to-drink businesses outside Europe will report through local operating units. Dogadan, a Türkiye-based tea business that has been a part of Coca-Cola since 2007, will report into Costa’s retail business in Europe.

Biocatalysts expanded its partnership with European beverage distributor Vulcascot to leverage their expertise and resources to benefit breweries across Europe. Vulcascot will be the exclusive distributor for the Deltabrew range across most European countries, effective immediately. This includes the flagship product Deltabrew Pure, a non-GMO enzymatic stabilization option that offers brewers an eco-friendly alternative to traditional stabilizers.

Almarai is leveraging digital technologies to optimize its dairy operations. Vertically integrated dairy company Almarai joined forces with Google Cloud in a strategic partnership to accelerate its digital transformation initiatives. The collaboration aims to empower Almarai to enhance operational efficiency and drive growth in an increasingly competitive market. The move will allow Almarai to meet increasing global demands and leverage the full benefits of cloud computing to accelerate innovation.

Wisdom Natural Brands, the parent company of the SweetLeaf brand of natural sugar substitutes, acquired Canada-based Drizzle Honey which provides sustainably sourced raw and superfood honey products. The transaction will enable the US distribution of Drizzle products, which include white raw and golden raw honey, raw honey infused with organic superfoods such as ginger, turmeric, cacao and berries and craft products such as cinnamon-spiced honey and hot honey infused with spicy crushed chilies.

Coca-Cola Beverages Florida invested US$10 million in its new Ocala sales and distribution center in Silver Springs Boulevard and NW 52nd Avenue in Florida. The new 28,000-square-foot facility will create a permanent hub for the company’s local operations. Coke Florida markets, sells, manufactures, distributes and merchandises products of The Coca-Cola Company across 47 Florida counties, including the Miami, Tampa, Orlando and the Jacksonville metropolitan area.

Nescafé soluble coffee can be used for both hot and cold beverages(Image credit: Nescafé).Launches and innovation

The UK’s Food and Drink Federation launched new guidance, “Allergen Recall Prevention,” to help manufacturers reduce allergen-related incidents and recalls by detailing key considerations for food manufacturers, in particular SMEs, to follow to prevent, manage and investigate food allergy incidents. The guidance highlights the processes that should be followed for the four main causes of allergen incidents- incorrect declaration of allergenic ingredients, mismatch in product and packaging, incorrect ‘free-from’ allergen claims and non declaration of unintentional allergen presence.

Nestlé unveiled a new range of soluble coffee for both hot and cold consumption. The product is launched under its brand Nescafé Classic and is available in two natural flavors: caramel and hazelnut. The soluble coffee dissolves in hot or cold water and is currently available in Central and Eastern Europe. Additionally, the products contain subtle notes of natural flavorings without added sugar.