FDBusiness.com

Tim Brett (pictured), President of Coca-Cola Western Europe, has been elected President of UNESDA Soft Drinks Europe, the industry association representing the non-alcoholic soft drinks sector in Europe. He commences his two-year tenure with immediate effect, and assumes the presidency from Stanislas de Gramont.

Following recent UNESDA pledges to make packaging more sustainable by increasing recyclability, collection and use of recycled plastics, and a commitment to reduce added sugars by a further 10% by 2020, Tim Brett acknowledges the strong progress being made and the importance of continued focus. With the upcoming election of a new European Parliament and appointment of a new Commission, Tim Brett reinforces UNESDA’s commitment to serve as a partner with EU institutions to achieve shared goals that help advance the economies and societies the sector serves.

“For more than 60 years UNESDA has united our industry around a common ambition to strengthen the contribution we make to Europe while serving consumers with the drinks they love,” he says. “Our sector has been proud to lead the way in setting out significant goals to create a healthier food environment and make packaging more sustainable.  I look forward to engaging with national associations and member companies to further this strong progress and build cross-sector partnerships that will allow us to achieve these priorities together.”

With a value chain of some €185 billion, the European soft drinks industry is a significant contributor to the European economy providing growth, jobs and added value throughout the supply chain. It supports over 1.7 million jobs in its value chain and delivers almost €30 billion in tax contributions to EU member states. There are 424 soft drinks production and bottling plants across the EU, supplied with ingredients from over 137,000 arable farms and producing an estimated 56 billion litres of beverages annually.

Tim Brett has been in his current role since July 2017 and previously served as President of Coca-Cola Japan, where he lived from 2011 to 2017. He currently represents The Coca-Cola Company within FoodDrinkEurope. His previous experience includes several general management positions in Europe, leading Coca-Cola in countries including the Czech Republic, Poland and the Alpine and Adriatic Business Unit comprising Switzerland, Austria, Hungary and the countries that formerly made up Yugoslavia. He holds an MA in History from St Andrews University in Scotland.