The drinks group said that performance remained “robust” in the six months to the end of March, but there was a modest decline in volumes in the period.
The launch of the Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) in February resulted in a small impact on volumes, the group said, stressing that it was too soon to evaluate the full effect of the scheme on the business. It noted that return rates in Ireland are ahead of those recorded in similar-sized European countries which have launched return schemes.
The impact on volumes had normalised over time in other markets which introduced return initiatives, the group noted.
The soft-drinks business also completed a supply-chain programme to boost production capacity in its Irish factories at the end of last year, ahead of the introduction of the Deposit Return Scheme.
It has had a manufacturing site in Ballyfermot for the past 50 years. The company has also been operating a Ballygowan bottling site in Newcastle West, Limerick for 35 years.
The new strategy involved adding new work rosters and introducing cost-savings programmes in its manufacturing and warehouse operations. The company said this allowed it to “successfully reduce the cost and complexity created by introducing DRS.”
Pepsi reported a rise in volume and revenue in the Irish market, while Ballygowan and MiWadi also recorded a strong performance. Overall group revenues were up 10.9pc to £880.3m in the six-month period, while volume sales rose 4.4pc.
Profits after tax were up 10.1pc to £59.9m.
Britvic said inflation had started to ease after two years. “As expected, our market-leading growth comes from the combination of another strong performance from our scale family favourite brands, coupled with accelerated growth in Brazil and across multiple new growth spaces, such as London Essence, Aqua Libra and Plenish,” chief executive officer Simon Litherland said.
Britvic, whose headquarters are in the UK, employs 360 people across the island of Ireland. It is the top domestic producer of soft drinks, and is in the top two soft-drinks companies by volume operating here.
The company also produces Robinsons and Tango, as well as PepsiCo brands which are made and marketed here under licence.
