The Coca-Cola Company reported strong second-quarter results, posting a 6% rise in net revenue to $12.0 billion, after its results were boosted by price hikes. The drinks giant recorded organic revenue growth of 11%, compared to 16% in the year-ago quarter, led consecutively by gains in the Latin America, EMEA, North America, Bottling Investments and Global Ventures segments.

In January, Coca-Cola’s beverage brand, Simply, expanded its portfolio with its first mixer offering, a dual-proposition cocktail/mocktail product line, aiming to simplify and elevate the at-home drinking experience. The following month, the beverage giant unveiled plans to axe its Lilt soft drink brand, relaunching it under its Fanta line as Fanta Pineapple and Grapefruit, with the company ensuring customers that nothing had changed with regards to the taste of the drink, it simply got itself a new name.

In April the Simply brand made headlines again, as Coca-Cola signed a licencing agreement with sales and marketing group Frutura to enable the use of the Minute Maid and Simply brands within the fresh produce category for the first time. Under the deal, Minute Maid and Simply are no longer confined to the beverage category; the brands can now be found in the produce aisle on fresh citrus and grape products.

In May, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) announced plans to invest at least €700 million throughout 2023 in capital expenditure, to deliver a better service to customers and to make progress toward its sustainability commitments. The investment will cover improvements in technology, digital tools and increased supply chain capacity – such as four new canning lines and investing in returnable glass bottles – as well as building digital, data and analytics capabilities, making data and analytics a competitive strength for CCEP.

In June, Coca-Cola HBC strengthened its beverage strategy by acquiring the Finlandia Vodka brand from Brown-Forman Finland for $220 million. In July, The Coca-Cola Company and eight bottling partners announced the closing of a new $137.7 million venture capital fund focusing on sustainability investments. The company said its carbon footprint is a major priority for the fund, initially focusing on five key areas with the most potential impact: packaging, heating and cooling, facility decarbonisation, distribution and supply chain.

CEO: James Quincey