Refresco to Buy Norwegian Beverage Manufacturer Telemark Kildevann

Juicing oranges (Cara-Cara preferably) is a Sunday morning ritual in our household. When it comes to consuming citrus, my kids know that the mandarin or orange comes in its own packaging, travels well, and is easy to open after giving it a firm roll between hands or on a table top.

What’s your citrus ritual?

Juice News 🧃

Refresco announces acquisition of Telemark Kildevann, a leading Norwegian beverage manufacturer

TKV is a family-owned manufacturer of soft drinks and bottled water, with two production facilities located in Fyresdal and Aurskog, Norway. The company maintains deep-rooted relationships with retailers and branded customers in Norway and Sweden, ensuring consistent, high-quality service and collaboration.

Refresco operates with 75 manufacturing facilities across Europe, North America, and Australia. With the acquisition of TKV, Refresco further strengthens its presence and operational capabilities to service customers across the Nordics, building on its existing footprint in Finland.

AGRANA resolves to acquire Raiffeisen Ware Austria (RWA) shares in AUSTRIA JUICE

“The full acquisition of AUSTRIA JUICE is an important step toward implementing our NEXT LEVEL group strategy. In our newly created strategic Food & Beverage Solutions division, we aim to strengthen the connection between AUSTRIA JUICE’s beverage bases and aroma business and our fruit preparations line, while expanding both globally. In addition, the product portfolio and the existing solution-oriented expertise at AUSTRIA JUICE will give us a boost in terms of tapping new markets, sales channels and customer groups,” explains AGRANA CEO Stephan Büttner.

“The sale of our AUSTRIA JUICE shares to AGRANA is another step toward focusing on our core business at RWA. In a fast-changing market environment, it is important to focus our efforts on our strengths in order to safeguard sustainable growth and cooperative added value,” explains Johannes Schuster, CEO of RWA Raiffeisen Ware Austria.

PLMA 2025: Döhler talks functionality in beverage innovation to unlock “soft drinks of the future”

Döhler’s Oliver Hoffmann, head of Market Segment Retail & e-Commerce, gave FoodIngredientsFirst a lowdown on the company’s beverage portfolio at PLMA, highlighting protein-enriched, plant-based drinks and non-alcoholic beverages mimicking alcoholic ones. He said functionality and sustainability are a core focus for Döhler’s beverage innovation, with gut health, weight management, and plant-based proteins expected to become more prominent.

Crown Holdings, Inc. to add third line to Ponta Grossa, Brazil beverage can plant

Crown Holdings (NYSE: CCK) announced plans to expand its Ponta Grossa beverage can plant in Parana, Brazil by adding a third high-speed production line. The expansion will increase the plant's annual production capacity from 2.4 billion to 3.6 billion cans, making it Crown's largest operation in Brazil. The new line will serve growing demand from both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage customers in southern Brazil. Commercial production is scheduled to begin in Q3 2026. The company maintains its 2025 guidance of approximately $800 million in adjusted free cash flow and capital expenditures of around $450 million.

Citrus News 🍊

Citrus derivative makes transparent wood 100 percent renewable

Five years after introducing see-through wood building material, researchers in Sweden have taken it to another level. They found a way to make their composite 100 percent renewable – and more translucent – by infusing wood with a clear bio-plastic made from citrus fruit.

“The new limonene acrylate it is made from renewable citrus, such as peel waste that can be recycled from the orange juice industry,” says lead author, PhD student.

Organic distributor acquires California citrus farm to preserve legacy

In early 2024, Orland, Calif., farmer Rich Johansen approached the Organically Grown Co. with a proposition. Johansen Ranch, established in 1910 and situated on the northernmost citrus-growing ground in California, is known for producing premium organic Satsuma and Clementine mandarins and other citrus varieties.

For more than four decades, the 77-acre ranch has supplied its harvest to the Portland, Ore.-based OGC for distribution throughout the Pacific Northwest. With retirement on the horizon, Johansen sought a buyer that would continue his farm’s legacy of growing high-quality organic produce with sustainable cultivation practices.

MSC adds South Africa–U.S. citrus route

The improved service will feature eight vessels, including four new additions, operating on a weekly schedule to guarantee reliable transit. Notably, the service will include a call at the Port of Philadelphia during the citrus season, a key hub for South African fruit imports.

APHIS expands the citrus greening quarantine area in California, impacting commercial citrus

APHIS is expanding the quarantined area in the Foothill Ranch and Mission Viejo areas of Orange County by 26.69 square miles, the Riverside area of Riverside County by 11.30 square miles, and the Valley Center area of San Diego County by 85.19 square miles.

Research Worth Reading 🔬

Identification of the Grapefruit (Citrus paradisi) Isocitrate Dehydrogenase Gene and Functional Analysis of CpNADP-IDH1 in Citric Acid Metabolism

These results showed that at least six genes encoding IDH exist in grapefruit, among which CpNADP-IDH1 catalyzes the decomposition of citric acid and regulates the organic acid content in fruits at maturity. CpNADP-IDH1 can be used as a candidate gene for molecular breeding of low-acid citrus varieties and as an essential target gene for developing citrus cultivation technology for reducing acid content.

Plant Protection Products to Control Alternaria Brown Spot Caused by Alternaria alternata in Citrus: A Systematic Review

During this research, we highlighted significant aspects that may be hindering the control of Alternaria alternata in citrus: long periods of fruit sensitivity, abundance and floatability of inoculum, rapid infections, the appearance of resistance to fungicides, moderate effectiveness inhibiting the germination of conidia, uncertainty about the times of application, and persistence of the products.