U.S. Soft Drink Projects Bring $2.4 Billion in Active Construction

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Written by Eric Funderburk for IIR News Intelligence (Sugar Land, Texas)

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Summary

The manufacture of soft drinks, juice drinks, bottled water and similar beverages means big business in the U.S., and the producers and bottlers of these beverages are at work on projects across the country.

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Shifting Trends

Most trade outlets and analysts agree that consumer tastes in soft drinks across the U.S. are shifting. People are moving away from full-calorie sodas and toward low- and zero-sugar options. The International Bottled Water Association notes that bottled water remains the preferred nonalcoholic canned or bottled beverage in the U.S. and that water has consistently outsold soda for the last several years. Most statistics firms and analysts also point to steady growth in the energy drinks sector.

Of the more than $2.4 billion in under-construction U.S. soft drink projects being tracked by Industrial Info, the lead project requiring the most investment is for one of the kings of energy drinks: Red Bull.

Red Bull's Construction and Top Co-packing Projects

Deep in the heart of what was once solidly tobacco country, in western North Carolina, Red Bull is at work turning a former Philip Morris plant into a massive production, bottling and distribution facility approaching 2.4 million square feet in size. The project is a collaboration between Red Bull, packaging supplier Ball Corporation and Austrian beverage bottler Rauch Fruchtsäfte. Construction kicked off last year, and the plant is expected to begin operating in 2028, taking a vertical approach to the Red Bull line, from production to putting product in cans to distribution infrastructure. Red Bull expects a gradual ramp-up of the project over time, aiming for around a 3 billion-can-per-year production by 2031. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can learn more by viewing the project report.

Project nos. 2 and 3 in the investment ranking are for co-packers, which manufacture a range of beverages for others and sometimes for their own brands. However, both Manna Capital Partners' production and distribution facility coming together in Montgomery, Alabama, and DrinkPak's co-packing plant in South Philadelphia will produce and distribute both alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. Manna's prime lines include nonalcoholic tea-based beverages, juices, water products as well as its own "Go Girl" brand energy drinks, while DrinkPak's output includes production for the popular Monster Energy beverages. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the related project reports.

An exclusively nonalcoholic copacker, Mountaintop Beverage, is expanding its plant in Morgantown, West Virginia. The facility produces a range of dairy, nondairy and coffee drinks for various brands, including popular categories such as ready-to-drink coffee products and high-protein and nutritional drinks. Mountaintop recently began the expansion project and is aiming to have the new square footage and new lines up and running by the end of 2027. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project report.

Other Notable Projects

Coca-Cola is the world's leading soda brand, and the Coca-Cola Company owns dozens of subsidiary beverage brands throughout the world. Popular U.S. brands outside of its Coca-Cola and Sprite products include Powerade, Dasani water and Minute Maid juice products, as well as popular imports to the U.S. such as Topo Chico from Mexico and Costa Coffee from the U.K.

It's perhaps no surprise then that Coca-Cola's multiple bottling franchises weigh in heavily on active U.S. project construction. Industrial Info is tracking four Coca-Cola bottling companies currently turning dirt on projects. Leading these companies is Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages LLC, which is underway on expansion projects for its plants in Fort Worth and San Antonio. While headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Coca-Cola Southwest is a subsidiary of Mexico-based Arca Continental, one of the world's leading bottlers for the Coca-Cola Company.

Texas also features in leading family-owned water brand Niagara's projects. The company is renovating its facility, including adding a new production line, at its Temple, Texas, plant. Niagara's largest project under construction, however, is for a new plant on a 580,000-square-foot brownfield site near Florence, Kentucky. Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project Database can learn more by viewing the related project reports.

Key Takeaways

• Industrial Info is tracking more than $2.4 billion worth of active construction for soft drink producers and bottlers in the U.S.
• A Red Bull project in North Carolina leads in investment value.
• Projects from Coca-Coca bottling franchises feature heavily in on-the-ground project activity.

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About IIR News Intelligence
IIR News Intelligence is a trusted source of news for the industrial process and energy markets, powered by Industrial Info Resources' Global Market Intelligence (GMI).

About Industrial Info Resources
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 250,000 current and future projects worth $30.2 Trillion (USD).