Britvic sees benefits of low-sugar fizzy drinks

Britvic, the firm behind Tango and Pepsi, believes health-conscious consumers are starting to accept carbonated drinks with no added sugar. Shares in the company slumped last year when a surprise 9% drop in the UK fizzy drinks market triggered profit warnings. Britvic, which this year spurned a takeover approach from private equity house Permira, yesterday said fizzy drink sales volumes had risen 8.1% for the 28 weeks to April 15, against a market up 1.7%. Just over half the gain came as the group moved for the first time onto the shelves at discount retailers such as Aldi and Lidl.