The three-day event, organised by Zenith International, began with a plant tour of the Coca-Cola Rhein Ruhr bottling plant in Leverkusen. Delegates saw the returnable bottle system, two high-speed lines and bag-in-box concentrate packing for McDonald’s and Burger King.
A welcoming address by managing director Jürgen Becker outlined its history and recent product innovations, including fermented sparkling drink Spirit of Georgia and canned, ready-to-drink coffee illycaffè.
The congress itself began with the opening address, ‘German market trends, dynamics and pressures’ by Beatrice Guillaume-Grabisch, who became president of business unit, Coca-Cola Germany, after working for Colgate Palmolive, Beiersdorf and L’Oréal.
“This is a year of crisis, no doubt – that confronts us with special challenges,” she said. “Our favourite phrase right now is, ‘When the going gets tough, the tough get going’, and it’s worth noting that the Chinese symbol for ‘crisis’ is the same as that for ‘opportunity’. Just how efficient and productive we are this year is key to emerging in a stronger position, with 50% of German households being affected with high and low earners more divided – 27% are fine, 46% are OK, but 27% can now afford only necessities. There’s less eating out of home, with canteens less busy due to reduced working hours. But soft drinks still stand for enjoyment and a positive attitude to life, so our focus is going to be on memorable moments with family and friends. We plan to be there through thick and thin with our consumers.
“It’s not always easy to drink as much as we should, and soft drinks such as sparkling Spirit of Georgia are an alternative to alcohol. Two thirds of our population is now aged over 30, so we need to keep pace with their needs. Continuous promotions and new impulses are important to us, but we must never lose sight of our core business. Whatever this year brings to our consumers, we want to be the motivation and fuel for 2009.
“It’s clear that consumers are valuing information and transparency, and doing business sustainably is being redefined. We’re involved in a big global compact – the Fair Company Initiative with work on The Danube and environmental projects nationwide. We’ll continue to work with retailers to avoid out-of-stocks. As 95% of our products are produced in Germany, people view this company as part of their daily life.”
Oswald Barckhahn, general manager for PepsiCo Deutschland GmbH, spoke on ‘Maintaining growth in a challenging climate’.
“If there’s a lot of wind, even the turkeys can fly,” he said. “If there’s no wind, only the eagle can fly. During a crisis, you’ll realise just who you are. Don’t go cutting everything and upset your customer. You can continue to innovate, but only with laser-sharp focus on payback. We need to invest in our core brands to drive gross margins, not value or volume.”
The packed programme continued, covering markets and marketing, ethics and the environment, and sessions on how to maximise impact while minimising cost. Speakers included:
The second day of the congress included sessions on functional innovation, making savings from new technology and market briefings, including ‘50 inspiring international innovation’ by Beverage Innovation magazine managing editor, Claire Phoenix.
For a full review of the event with pictures, see the next issue of Beverage Innovation magazine. You can also see some of the Anuga FoodTec innovations in our special gallery.
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