{"id":1063187,"date":"2026-07-02T06:30:55","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T06:30:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1063187\/"},"modified":"2026-07-02T06:30:55","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T06:30:55","slug":"suntory-invests-14-5m-to-strengthen-uk-blackcurrant-supply-chain-and-future-proof-ribena-production","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1063187\/","title":{"rendered":"Suntory Invests \u00a314.5m to Strengthen UK Blackcurrant Supply Chain and Future-Proof Ribena Production"},"content":{"rendered":"

Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I has invested \u00a314.5 million in a new blackcurrant processing facility designed to strengthen UK agricultural supply chains, improve traceability, support British growers and modernise fruit processing for Ribena.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I (SBF GB&I) has announced a \u00a314.5 million investment in a next-generation blackcurrant processing facility in Herefordshire, reinforcing its long-term commitment to British agriculture and domestic food manufacturing.<\/p>\n

Developed in partnership with D\u00f6hler Group\u2019s<\/a> Bevisol Ltd<\/a>, the new facility in Ledbury will begin operating in time for the 2026 blackcurrant harvest. Located closer to both key growing regions and SBF GB&I\u2019s production site, the facility is expected to improve operational efficiency while strengthening the resilience of the Ribena supply chain.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a huge milestone for SBF GB&I, Ribena and the future of British blackcurrant production,\u201d said Karl Ottomar<\/a>, Supply Chain Director at SBF GB&I.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy investing in innovative processing here in the UK, we are supporting our supply chain while continuing to work closely with the farmers who have been at the heart of Ribena for generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

The new facility introduces a range of advanced processing technologies aimed at improving productivity, product quality and supply chain visibility.<\/p>\n

These include vapour recompression evaporators to increase processing efficiency, cleanable membrane filtration systems, automated fruit handling and weighing equipment, and digital smart-tag tracking to enhance traceability throughout the blackcurrant supply chain.<\/p>\n

The investment forms part of Suntory\u2019s wider strategy to modernise UK operations while improving supply chain transparency and resilience.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

SBF GB&I sources around 10,500 tonnes of blackcurrants annually from a network of 33 British farms across five growing regions, supplying fruit used in Ribena.<\/p>\n

The new processing facility is expected to create 12 permanent jobs and 30 seasonal roles, supporting rural employment alongside long-term investment in UK fruit production.<\/p>\n

Farming Minister Stephen Morgan<\/a> said the project demonstrates confidence in British agriculture.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis investment is a vote of confidence in British farming and the generations of blackcurrant growers whose fruit has helped make Ribena a household name,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy investing in greener technology and modern processing, projects such as this strengthen UK supply chains, support rural jobs and help ensure British blackcurrant production continues to thrive for years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The announcement is one element of a broader \u00a357.5 million investment across Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I\u2019s UK supply chain.<\/p>\n

Alongside the new processing facility, the company is investing in manufacturing upgrades at its Coleford site, including plans to reduce reliance on gas through electricity infrastructure improvements and the installation of a new \u00a325 million production line scheduled for 2027.<\/p>\n

The investment also builds on longer-term initiatives to strengthen UK blackcurrant production, including Suntory\u2019s breeding programme with the James Hutton Institute and a regenerative agriculture pilot supporting British growers.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I has invested \u00a314.5 million in a new blackcurrant processing facility designed to strengthen…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1063188,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3,4],"tags":[748,393,4884,26716,1144,712,16,15,1764],"class_list":["post-1063187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-uk","category-united-kingdom","tag-britain","tag-england","tag-great-britain","tag-insights","tag-northern-ireland","tag-scotland","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-wales"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116848984641360524","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1063187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1063187"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1063187\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1063188"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1063187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1063187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1063187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}