Suntory localises Ribena blackcurrant processing

Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I has invested £14.5 million in a blackcurrant processing facility in Ledbury, Herefordshire, bringing a critical stage of Ribena production closer to British growers.

The facility has been developed with Döhler Group’s Bevisol and is operational in time for this year’s harvest. It is designed to process blackcurrants closer to the growing regions that supply Ribena and closer to Suntory’s main UK manufacturing operations.

Blackcurrants for Ribena are harvested during a compressed six-week summer window, then pressed and concentrated for use in the drink. Suntory relies on a network of 33 farms across five British growing regions, producing around 10,500 tonnes of fruit each year.

The Ledbury site includes vapour recompression evaporators, cleanable membrane filtration, automated weighing, tipping and handling systems, and digital smart tag tracking on fruit bins. The investment is expected to create 12 full-time roles and 30 seasonal positions.

Karl Ottomar, supply chain director at Suntory Beverage & Food GB&I, said: “This is a huge milestone for SBF GB&I, Ribena and the future of British blackcurrant production. By 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.”

The facility forms part of a wider £57.5 million UK supply-chain investment programme. Suntory’s separate £25m Apollo 5 aseptic line at Coleford, scheduled for early 2027, is designed to consolidate Lucozade and Ribena production with faster changeovers and lower water use during bottle cleaning.

The Ledbury investment extends that manufacturing programme upstream into fruit processing. Ribena’s agricultural supply chain is unusually central to the brand’s industrial model because the crop is seasonal, perishable, and concentrated within a short harvest period. Processing proximity gives the business more control at the point where timing, intake, and crop handling are most exposed.

Time-sensitive fruit handling places pressure on transport, intake scheduling, pressing capacity, filtration, concentration, storage, and inventory tracking. If one stage lacks capacity or visibility, delays can move quickly through the chain. Automated weighing and smart tag tracking support the practical need to know where fruit is, what has been received, and how material is moving during the busiest part of the year.

Membrane filtration and vapour recompression also show how energy and process efficiency are shaping beverage ingredient preparation. Concentration is an energy-intensive stage, particularly where water must be removed from fruit juice or extract before storage and later manufacturing. Modern evaporator technology can reduce the energy burden while supporting throughput and consistency.

The facility strengthens a domestic sourcing model at a time when ingredient supply chains are under pressure from climate volatility, regulatory scrutiny, and transport uncertainty. UK blackcurrant production gives Suntory a relatively local crop base, but resilience still depends on breeding work, grower relationships, processing capacity, and efficient manufacturing assets.

Suntory has also invested in blackcurrant breeding with the James Hutton Institute and regenerative agriculture work in Norfolk. Those programmes sit alongside the Ledbury processing investment by addressing crop resilience and farm-level sustainability. Agricultural partnerships are becoming more closely tied to manufacturing strategy as beverage companies work to reduce emissions and protect supply continuity.

The project is a practical example of localised supply-chain engineering. It does not simply add capacity. It connects growers, seasonal crop handling, fruit concentration, traceability, and final manufacturing into a tighter operating system, reducing the distance between harvest and processing during the most critical period of the year.

UK beverage production is increasingly being shaped by investments that combine agricultural sourcing, process efficiency, and manufacturing flexibility. Suntory’s Ledbury facility gives Ribena a stronger link between crop intake and production planning, while placing process technology closer to the farms on which the brand depends.