Coca-Cola has put its UK prices up – and it says costs are still climbing
Key Points
- Coca-Cola Europacific Partners raised headline prices in Great Britain in the second quarter of 2026
- British revenue reached €1.79 billion for the six months to 3 July, up 8.7% excluding currency movements — the company's fastest-growing European market
- CCEP expects the cost of each case of drinks to rise by about 1.5% over the full year
- The company blames Middle East disruption, reduced flows through the Strait of Hormuz and higher oil, gas and shipping costs for renewed inflation
- It warns cost-of-living pressure could hit affordability and demand, but reaffirmed full-year revenue growth targets of 3% to 4%
Coca-Cola’s bottler raised headline prices in Great Britain during the second quarter and expects its own costs to keep rising for the rest of the year.
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, the London-listed company that makes, sells and distributes Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Monster, Powerade and Smartwater across Great Britain, reported British revenue of €1.79 billion for the six months to 3 July, up 5.6% on the same period last year.
Stripping out currency movements, that figure grew 8.7%, the fastest of any of the company’s European markets.
It attributed part of the rise to a headline price increase it introduced in the second quarter, alongside a shift in what shoppers bought – more Monster, less water.
British volumes grew by a mid single-digit percentage over the half, which the company put down to its FIFA World Cup marketing and the warm weather in June.
Coca-Cola Zero Sugar sold strongly on the back of the Cherry Float launch, and Diet Coke held its momentum with a new cherry variant and a Devil Wears Prada tie-in.
Monster grew by double digits on flavours including Viking Berry and Ultra Vice Guava, while new Smartwater listings and fresh Powerade pack formats added further volume.
Costs still rising
In results published on Tuesday (4 August), CCEP said it expects the cost of making and moving each case of drinks to rise by around 1.5% across the full year.
It has locked in prices for roughly 90% of the raw materials it needs for 2026, which limits how far further commodity swings can reach it before January.
The company pointed to the Middle East as the main driver of renewed cost pressure.
Constraints on global shipping and reduced flows through the Strait of Hormuz have pushed oil and gas prices higher and made them more volatile, lifting input and transport costs and feeding broader inflation, it said. CCEP also flagged tighter financial conditions and a more uncertain economic outlook, with the sharpest downside risks in Europe and emerging markets.
It has seen no material interruption to its own supply so far.
Chief Executive Damian Gammell said the consumer environment remains challenging and the full impact of the situation in the Middle East is still uncertain.
The company added that cost-of-living pressure could affect affordability and demand over time, and noted softer sentiment in some markets and channels, though it has recorded no material drop in demand to date.
Across the 31 countries where it operates, CCEP reported revenue of €10.72 billion for the half, up 4.4%, and operating profit of €1.46 billion, up 6.9%. It reaffirmed its full-year targets, which include revenue growth of 3% to 4%.
