Beverage companies are focusing on new ingredient sourcing strategies to secure supply in 2013, according to the food and agribusiness research team at Rabobank. Other issues facing beverage companies include weaker demand in developed markets, slower growth in emerging markets as well as price and supply volatility for commodities.
Outlook for commodities will be a significant concern for companies, and exerting greater control over procurement will grow in importance for beverage companies. In the past, beverage manufacturers were more concerned with buying inputs at the lowest price, but in today’s world of tightening supply and price volatility, security of supply has emerged as a key concern for many manufacturers, according to Rabobank.
“Strategic sourcing requires beverage companies to re-evaluate their procurement process through the lens of global supply and demand to better understand the impact of price volatility, security of supply and related risks,” said Ross Colbert, global beverage strategist for Rabobank. “This approach has led global brand owners to develop dedicated supply chains where suppliers, processors, distributors and even retailers are even more aligned and operate in a more integrated system.”
For the soft drink segment, Rabobank said the market segment will balance developed markets, where growth has stagnated, and developing markets, where high growth rates have slowed. Bottled water will still lead in volume with a projected growth rate of 5.4% in the coming year. Ready-to-drink tea and Asian specialty drinks are projected to be the fastest growing segments with growth rates of 9% and 14%.
Both Coca-Cola Co., Atlanta, and PepsiCo, Inc., Purchase, N.Y., are undergoing refranchising as they shift bottling assets to franchise partners to allow the companies to focus their efforts on brand building and marketing.
Rabobank also noted that supply and demand issues are altering the fruit juice segment, with supplier investing in growers in an effort to better manage supply. They are also focusing on strategies such as ingredient substitution or product reformulation in an effort to better manage costs.
Growth in the coffee segment will be driven by innovation in single-cup brewing, a move toward premium products, and increased consumption in the away-from-home channel in developed markets.
The global tea industry is forecast to face a short supply in 2013, according to Rabobank. Key tea producing countries are expected to have a production decline in the range of 1% to 5% while demand is forecast to grow 3%.
