Soft Drinks has become part and parcel of the lifestyle of Indians, irrespective of middle aged people or kids. Particularly, after the arrival of a number of fast food joints in India, soft drinks have gained more and more popularity. Foods like French fries, burgers and pizzas go hand in hand with soft drinks. Gone are the days when soft drinks were preferred only during sunny days, nowadays soft drinks are enjoyed with almost every meal that is had by people outside their home. In spite of several issues that crept up with respect to ingredients used in the manufacture of soft drinks, the market remained stable.

Categorization of soft drink industry:

The industry of soft drinks is divided into two main categories namely non-carbonated and carbonated drinks. The non-carbonated drink segments include mostly mango flavors, squashes and fruit juices, while carbonated drinks include orange, lemon and lemon flavors. Some of the top brand names in the soft drinks sector in India are Thumps Up, Pepsi and Coco-cola, Limca, Sprite, Mirinda, 7UP, etc… With a view to meet the requirements of different segments of the society, these soft drinks are being offered in varied sizes.

Top players in the soft drinks industry in India:

The soft drinks industry in India is dominated by some of the top players and the names of these top players are given below:

• Coco-Cola India

• PepsiCo India

• Rasna International

Some of the details regarding these top soft drink manufacturers in India are given below:

Coco-Cola India:

Coco-Cola Company entered into India in the name of Coco-Cola India, which is its wholly owned subsidiary. The company was launched in India in the year 1993 and this launch was actually a re-launch since India encouraged foreign investments in different industries. The company has more than 1.3 million retailers and more than 7000 distributors in India and their brands are the leading brands in the soft drinks industry in India. Some of their popular brands in India are Thumps up, Sprite, Limca, Fanta Apple, Fanta Orange and of course coco-cola. Their recent introduction to the soft drink industry in India is Minute Maid Juice.

PepsiCo India:

PepsiCo is an international company that entered into Indian soft drink industry in the year 1989 and within a short period of its entry, the company has started dominating the Indian soft drink market. The company is operating with the vision of Performance with purpose and the meaning of this vision is that when the business increases the value of the shares, they become responsible for improving the society they serve and the environment whose resources are being used by them. Thus, Pepsico India serves the society to grow along with it. Some of their popular products are Slice, Pepsi, Nimbooz, Mountain Dew, Mirinda and 7UP.

Rasna International:

Rasna is another popular name in the soft drinks industry in India and this company has in-depth and adequate information and knowledge on market behaviors, market sizes, finances, government policies, project viabilities, etc… They have emerging and huge market for their products all over the world and they have made their mark in the food & beverages industry in India. They have introduced a wide range of ready to make soft drinks that can be prepared at the comfort of the home of users.

On the basis of pattern of consumption, the pattern of soft drink industry can be classified into two segments, namely based on the premises in which they are sold like cinema halls, restaurants, shops, railway stations, etc… and the other segment is in-house consumption, which indicates that soft drinks consumed at home by the consumers. Even though, the soft drinks industry is growing in India, it is comparatively growing at a slower pace as compared to that of soft drinks industry in other countries.