🤔 Wish you knew more about how to lead an association in a complex and fast-evolving environment? Then, the 𝗘𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 (𝗘𝗠𝗜𝗔𝗠) could be just what you need.

Schools across Europe may be closed for the summer break, but our commitment to implementing our robust school policies is not taking a holiday. We remain ready to continue delivering on our school policies when the new school year begins:

This isn't just another Friday, as we are saying goodbye to Alessia Montillo, who has been with us since January, covering for Delphine Close during her maternity leave. We have very much enjoyed working with you, dear Alessia! Many thanks for your great work & for being such a friendly colleague.

⚽️ Every great match needs a strong, proactive team to deliver results. Meet our sector’s Packaging Circularity Starting 11! 🥅 11 players, one goal: Driving a circular economy for beverage packaging in Europe. Every player plays a key role:

♻️ Wondering what closed-loop recycling really means? And why fair access to sufficient recycled materials is so important for our sector in advancing packaging circularity? 🎥 Our colleagues from Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Dries Van Aerde & Maria Negut, make it all clear. Watch the video! ↓

♻️ New packaging collection progress update! Close The Glass Loop released the latest annual data on European glass packaging collection rates for recycling. 🤔 How is the EU doing? ✅ The EU’s glass value chain achieved 82.2% glass packaging collection rate in 2024.

🌍 Local impact, global reach. Sounds familiar? Coca-Cola produces its beverages in multiple plants across Europe. See what it looks like in practice. ↓

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip ☘️ Ireland is now at the helm of the Presidency of the Council of the EU, and you may not know that it is home to the tradition of seaweed bathing, a re-emerging wellness trend. 🔎 Curious? Find out more 👇 www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/artic...

🏡 Paris is always a good idea, especially when it comes with strong local stories of value creation like La Limonaderie de Paris. La Limonaderie de Paris is a French beverage company recognised as an artisanal lemonade maker, which produces 2 million beverages annually. 🎥 Watch the video 👇

☘️ Ireland takes the helm of the Presidency of the Council of the EU today. Welcome, Ireland! The European soft drinks sector is looking forward to engaging with the Irish Presidency to help drive policies that are simple, evidence-based and that foster business growth and innovation.

A moment of appreciation for our good friends Wouter Vermeulen and Paul Skehan, two brilliant minds and hearts who have built the foundations of today’s UNESDA and piloted our association, and sector at large, to new heights.

🔔 New article from our Director General, Nicholas Hodac, is now live! Nicholas explains how the EU should support further progress in packaging circularity and strengthen innovation.

Did you get a chance to #TasteTheInnovation at the Coca-Cola Europe stand during FoodDrinkEurope’s Ideas Fest? It was a space showcasing Coca-Cola Europe’s impressive innovation story: how it continuously adapts and innovates to meet changing consumer needs and tastes, and different lifestyles.

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip 🧳 The way you store luggage in a hotel room is important. Do you do it safely? 🔎 Check out these tips 👉 traveltomorrow.com/travel-exper...

If you were at FoodDrinkEurope’s Ideas Fest yesterday, you will have seen that innovation in the food and drink industry is a clear priority and it must accelerate to help build a more competitive, sustainable and healthier Europe.

What do you get when you combine food and drinks, insightful workshops, and powerful innovation stories from across the food and drink industry? 😉 FoodDrinkEurope’s Ideas Fest in Brussels!

🤝 We were so pleased to join the metal packaging industry in Berlin for great discussions on industrial competitiveness, innovation, and environmental sustainability at the Metal Packaging Europe Conference. A few key messages stood out from the discussions:

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip Not enough just to stay at a hotel with a view? 🎾 Prefer one with a tennis court too? 😉 These are some of Europe’s resorts where you can enjoy a tennis holiday 👉 www.euronews.com/travel/2026/...

👀 Recognise this spot? FoodDrinkEurope’s Ideas Fest and Summer Party will be back here next week. 🙂 🍴 We are excited to connect with our industry peers and policymakers, to discuss key priorities and pressing challenges, and to explore the latest innovations in the food and drink industry.

⏳ Just two weeks to go: on 1 July, Ireland will take over the six-month Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The Irish Presidency programme is now available, and several priorities are particularly important for our sector, including:

♻️ Clear, harmonised EU sorting labels for consumers play a big role in strengthening the Single Market and helping drive packaging circularity.

🏡 As local as it gets! That’s our sector. And Olvi is part of it as one of the largest beverage producers in Finland, operating in the country since 1878. Olvi produces a wide range of soft drinks at its site in Iisalmi, staying close to consumers and supply chain partners.

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip 🏃‍♀️ Running through geological hot spots, on the rim of two volcanic craters and over black lava rock? 🏃‍♂️ Or even running through the jungle? These are some of the most adventurous marathons you could try 👉 traveltomorrow.com/most-adventu...

😉 Here's what the European glass packaging value chain was up to last week. ♻️ The glass packaging industry came together in Brussels for the Close The Glass Loop Annual Event to discuss how Europe should advance a circular economy for glass packaging, while keeping the industry competitive.

🍴 A food and drink event like no other is back on 24 June in Brussels. Join FoodDrinkEurope’s Ideas Fest & Summer Party!

📣 A new leadership journey begins for UNESDA. Join us in welcoming Natalia Filippociants, Senior Vice-President and General Manager at PepsiCo, as our new President!

It’s #WorldFoodSafetyDay! Food safety is more than how food is produced and stored. It’s also about how we understand it. Knowing date marking is crucial for helping us enjoy our food safely and reducing food waste. Are you sure you know what these labels mean exactly? ⬇️

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip 🌍🚲 Take your bike, it’s World Bicycle Day! And, if you love cycling challenges, get ready for the BXL Tour 👉 www.bxltour.be/en

Environmental progress is happening at full speed in our sector. On this World Environment Day, we highlight how our sector is delivering positive change for the environment on many fronts, from decarbonising operations & advancing circular packaging solutions to protecting water & biodiversity.

Reuse was in the spotlight at an event in the EU Parliament earlier this week. Several of our members, policymakers & other key stakeholders engaged in a critical discussion on the implementation of the Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) particularly on beverage packaging reuse targets.

🌍🌿 EU Green Week is here and our Director General, Nicholas Hodac, is out with a new article on the upcoming EU Circular Economy Act (CEA).

📌🌍 Producing 30 million soft drinks every year in Slovakia, using locally sourced ingredients? Yes. 👨👩‍🦰 Supporting local jobs by employing 186 people? Of course. 🤝 Generating value for Slovakia’s economy and families? Naturally.

📣 The Swedish soft drinks sector has made an announcement, and it is a big one! 👏 Member companies of the Swedish Brewers Association (member of UNESDA) have jointly committed to reducing the amount of sugar in carbonated soft drinks by 40% by 2030, against a 2019 baseline.

Our Director General, Nicholas Hodac, was very pleased to speak at the first conference excellently hosted by the European Deposit Return Systems Association (EDRSA) in Bratislava, which UNESDA was proud to support.

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip Looking for some physical exercise this weekend? Then, the Brussels 20km race may be just what you need. Our DG, Nicholas Hodac, couldn’t resist the challenge! 🙂 Say hi if you spot him, and make good use of the hydration points to stay hydrated 👉 20kmdebruxelles.be/en/

End of the month already? Time for a quick recap of our key highlights from May: 🎤 🔄 All things circular! Our Director General, Nicholas Hodac, joined the Circular Economy Forum in Brussels, hosted by The Parliament.

👏 Our member Suntory Beverage & Food Europe (SBFE) has reformulated more than 300 drinks across Europe and reduced added sugar across its portfolio by 35% over the past decade. It may sound simple, but reducing sugar in soft drinks is not straightforward.

📍 🏠 It is local. It is ‘Made in Italy’ soft drinks. It is Galvanina, a beverage company operating near Rimini that provides jobs for 136 people and generates an annual value of over €99 million. 🎥 Watch the video to find out how Galvanina operates & stays close to consumers’ tastes and preferences.

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip 🎾 Is tennis your thing? Roland-Garros is underway! How much do you know about this iconic French tournament? Take this quiz and find out! 👉 www.euronews.com/culture/2023...

📣 The Close the Glass Loop Annual Event is nearly here! ♻️ The glass packaging value chain and EU policymakers will come together to discuss how Europe can advance a circular economy for glass packaging, while maintaining the competitiveness of the glass packaging industry.

Know Sanmy? It is Spain’s oldest soft drinks company, employing more than 176,000 people and generating over €10.7 billion in revenue. A strong example of our sector’s local roots. ⬇️ Discover how Sanmy supports Spain’s economy and communities.

💧 Several of our members are participating in the Global Water Summit this week in Madrid. Water is a priority for our sector. It is an essential ingredient in our soft drinks, making up over 90% of their content. It is also vital for the communities we serve.

🎤🔄 Much of what makes next week exciting is the inaugural conference of the European Deposit Return Systems Association (EDRSA) entitled ‘Deposit Return Systems and a Competitive European Union: From Collection to Circular Economy’.

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip ☀️ Warmer days, more sunlight! It is the perfect time to start an herb garden. 🤔 How do you get started? Follow these tips 👉 www.gardenary.com/blog/how-to-...

🌄 Our sector works closely with farmers to help build a more sustainable and resilient EU agri-food system. 🌱 Did you know that several of our members are scaling regenerative agriculture across Europe? PepsiCo Europe, a longstanding farmer partner, shares its key learnings:

🏠📍 It all happens close to home. Our sector invests, innovates and produces over 97% of our soft drinks locally across more than 500 manufacturing plants in Europe. 🌍 A strong example of this deep local presence is Sumol Compal.

♻️ Make closed-loop recycling for glass packaging a success through effective collection for recycling! 🔎 Check out the ‘’Principles for Good Bottle Bank Collection of Glass Packaging’’.

⭐️ Happy Europe Day! ⭐️ Celebrating Europe is also celebrating the industries that produce, invest, and innovate across the continent, including the soft drinks sector. 🧐 Did you know our soft drinks are made in Europe?

💡 UNESDA #FridayTip Across Europe, there are plenty of events being organised to celebrate Europe Day (tomorrow!). 🔎 Choose your events and join the celebrations! 👉 europeday.eu

🔄 Circularity of beverage containers is gaining even more momentum in Austria! 👀 Our colleague Alessia Montillo was in Vienna this week to see it in action, as part of the study tour to Austria’s Deposit Return System (DRS), organised by the European Alliance for Best-in-Class DRS.