Undeterred by a 30-year-high in world market prices, beverage companies Coca-Cola & PepsiCo are scrambling to buy sugar overseas to make sure they are not compelled to slow down bottling lines during the peak demand months of summer.
Firm orders have been placed for delivery of sugar up to June. Cola companies are now gearing up to contract sugar for the remaining season, when soft-drink demand is at its peak. Industry analysts say beverage companies are incurring heavy losses – especially in top-selling packs like 200ml glass bottles or 600ml and 2l PET packs, due to record high sugar prices. Sugar contributes up to 25 percent share of soft-drink production costs. But after having raised prices just a few weeks ago, it may no longer be possible to make consumers share their burden.