Year over year, the global value of exported soft drinks rose 16.6% from $22.4 billion during 2020.
The 6 biggest exporters of soft drinks are Austria, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Thailand and the United States of America. Together, that powerful cohort of suppliers accounted for about half (50.4%) of international sales of pertinent beverage commodities in 2021.
An ever-expanding myriad of flavors are quenching the thirst of soft drink enthusiasts around the globe. Consumers continue to indulge in tastes ranging from non-alcoholic beer, bubble gum and plum to curry and teriyaki carbonated drinks.
Drilling down within the overall soft drinks’ category, global export revenues from carbonated soft drinks were worth $9.7 billion for 2021 (or 46.2% of the overall category total). That dollar amount represents a 28.2% increase for the carbonated subcategory since 2017 and a 19.8% advance from 2020 to 2021.
From a continental perspective, suppliers located in European countries generated the highest international sales for all types of soft drinks during 2021 with shipments valued at $17.7 billion or just over two-thirds (67.6%) of the worldwide total. In second place were exporters in Asia at 17.5% while another 9.8% of globally exported soft drinks originated from North America.
Smaller percentages came from Latin America (2.4%) excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean, Africa (1.8%), and Oceania (0.9%) mainly New Zealand and Australia.
For research purposes, the four-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 2202 for soft drinks. The subcategory code for carbonated soft drinks is 220210.
Top Soft Drinks Exporters by Country
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of soft drinks during 2021.
- Austria: US$2.8 billion (12.9% of exported soft drinks)
- Netherlands: $1.96 billion (9%)
- Germany: $1.92 billion (8.8%)
- Switzerland: $1.85 billion (8.5%)
- Thailand: $1.6 billion (7.3%)
- United States: $1.3 billion (5.9%)
- France: $802.8 million (3.7%)
- Italy: $725.4 million (3.3%)
- Belgium: $633.4 million (2.9%)
- United Kingdom: $604.7 million (2.8%)
- Mexico: $571.5 million (2.6%)
- South Korea: $498.5 million (2.3%)
- Spain: $426.9 million (2%)
- Poland: $412.5 million (1.9%)
- Canada: $346 million (1.6%)
By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 74% of global soft drinks exported in 2021.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing exporters of soft drinks since 2020 were: Poland (up 34%), Mexico (up 31.4%), Denmark (up 28.8%) and Netherlands (up 24.6%).
Two top countries posted year-over-year declines in their exported soft drinks sales namely Thailand (down -2.4%) and Belgium (down -0.5%).
Countries Generating Largest Trade Surpluses from Soft Drinks
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for soft drinks during 2021. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the surplus between the value of each country’s exported soft drinks and its import purchases for that same commodity.
- Austria: US$2.6 billion (net export surplus up 34% since 2020)
- Switzerland: $1.6 billion (up 0.8%)
- Thailand: $1.53 billion (up 19.9%)
- Netherlands: $1.48 billion (up 49.4%)
- Mexico: $621.4 million (up 202.8%)
- Germany: $538.5 million (down -28%)
- Italy: $478.1 million (up 91.2%)
- South Korea: $477.3 million (up 55%)
- Denmark: $268.4 million (up 11.1%)
- Poland: $227.9 million (down -17.5%)
- Malaysia: $175.9 million (down -33.1%)
- Taiwan: $149.2 million (up 9%)
- Japan: $142.2 million (up 831.3%)
- Spain: $139.1 million (down -296.3%)
- Zambia: $135.3 million (up 252.1%)
Austria generated the highest surplus in the international trade of soft drinks. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms Austria’s competitive advantage for this specific product category.
Countries Experiencing Worst Trade Deficits from Soft Drinks
The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for soft drinks during 2021. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the deficit between the value of each country’s imported soft drinks purchases and its exports for that same commodity.
- United States: -US$2.6 billion (net export deficit up 23.8% since 2020)
- China: -$687.6 million (up 164.3%)
- United Kingdom: -$638.8 million (up 19.4%)
- Canada: -$562.1 million (down -19.6%)
- Vietnam: -$449.3 million (down -1377.7%)
- Norway: -$312.4 million (up 87.6%)
- Australia: -$261.1 million (up 36.6%)
- Cambodia: -$256.6 million (up 18.6%)
- Ireland: -$223.8 million (up 78%)
- Laos: -$200.5 million (up 5318.1%)
- Singapore: -$185.4 million (up 18.4%)
- Hong Kong: -$183.7 million (up 23.5%)
- Chile: -$181.4 million (up 132.4%)
- Kazakhstan: -$148 million (up 613.8%)
- Finland: -$142.6 million (up 155.6%)
The United States of America incurred the highest deficit in the international trade of soft drinks. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights America’s strong competitive disadvantage for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for soft drinks suppliers that help satisfy the powerful demand among Canadian consumers.
Soft Drinks Exporting Companies
Below are global producers that represent established players that dominate the international soft drinks trade. The country that is home to each conglomerate’s headquarters is shown within parenthesis.
- Asahi Soft Drinks (Japan)
- Britvic plc (United Kingdom)
- Cott (Canada)
- Dr Pepper Snapple Group (United States)
- Drinko (Lebanon)
- Faygo Beverages, Inc (United States)
- Fraser and Neave, Limited (Singapore)
- Hamoud Boualem (Algeria)
- Jones Soda (United States)
- PepsiCo Inc (United States)
- Perrier (France)
- Sumal + Compal SA (Portugal)
- The Coca-Cola Company (United States)
- Vitasoy (Hong Kong)
Searchable List of Soft Drinks Exporting Countries in 2021
The 100 key exporters of soft drinks showcased in the automated database below represent 99.8% of the total value for globally exported soft drink beverages during 2021.
| Rank | Exporter | Soft Drink Exports | 2020-1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Austria | $3,422,531,000 | +22.1% |
| 2. | Netherlands | $2,469,088,000 | +24.6% |
| 3. | Germany | $2,366,643,000 | +21.2% |
| 4. | Switzerland | $1,975,305,000 | +7% |
| 5. | Thailand | $1,554,860,000 | -2.4% |
| 6. | United States | $1,408,483,000 | +10.1% |
| 7. | Belgium | $936,544,000 | -0.5% |
| 8. | France | $917,116,000 | +14.1% |
| 9. | Italy | $807,562,000 | +8.3% |
| 10. | Mexico | $772,157,000 | +31.4% |
| 11. | United Kingdom | $654,003,000 | +7.6% |
| 12. | South Korea | $594,246,000 | +19.2% |
| 13. | Poland | $552,747,000 | +34% |
| 14. | Spain | $521,732,000 | +22.2% |
| 15. | Denmark | $438,236,000 | +28.8% |
| 16. | Canada | $393,399,000 | +13.7% |
| 17. | Japan | $369,888,000 | +15.5% |
| 18. | Russia | $348,912,000 | +60.5% |
| 19. | Malaysia | $293,160,000 | +15% |
| 20. | Hungary | $282,433,000 | +19.8% |
| 21. | Türkiye | $279,507,000 | +46.2% |
| 22. | Sweden | $271,214,000 | +13.3% |
| 23. | Czech Republic | $269,976,000 | +12% |
| 24. | China | $255,642,000 | +26.3% |
| 25. | Taiwan | $218,299,000 | +13.6% |
| 26. | Saudi Arabia | $193,855,000 | +12.3% |
| 27. | Serbia | $190,003,000 | +51.4% |
| 28. | Portugal | $179,970,000 | +54.9% |
| 29. | South Africa | $168,310,000 | +30.2% |
| 30. | Guatemala | $158,826,000 | +28.3% |
| 31. | Zambia | $138,758,000 | +58% |
| 32. | New Zealand | $135,364,000 | +33.6% |
| 33. | Slovakia | $133,754,000 | +113.8% |
| 34. | Ukraine | $129,761,000 | +76.6% |
| 35. | El Salvador | $126,058,000 | +47.3% |
| 36. | Ireland | $117,864,000 | +15.9% |
| 37. | Hong Kong | $115,877,000 | -0.9% |
| 38. | Australia | $112,213,000 | +53.8% |
| 39. | Romania | $112,067,000 | +24.9% |
| 40. | Vietnam | $110,492,000 | -9.4% |
| 41. | Singapore | $84,653,000 | +83% |
| 42. | Slovenia | $83,379,000 | +44.8% |
| 43. | Trinidad/Tobago | $82,687,000 | +26.9% |
| 44. | Indonesia | $81,923,000 | +15.3% |
| 45. | Croatia | $74,438,000 | +18.7% |
| 46. | Bulgaria | $67,071,000 | -41% |
| 47. | Greece | $66,368,000 | +22.9% |
| 48. | Lithuania | $59,494,000 | +54.5% |
| 49. | Georgia | $57,671,000 | +84.5% |
| 50. | United Arab Emirates | $53,293,000 | -72.6% |
| 51. | Costa Rica | $51,220,000 | +40.3% |
| 52. | Luxembourg | $50,326,000 | +21.3% |
| 53. | Lebanon | $48,915,000 | +54.1% |
| 54. | Belarus | $45,785,000 | +17.1% |
| 55. | India | $43,901,000 | +119.7% |
| 56. | Nicaragua | $40,860,000 | +27.8% |
| 57. | Kazakhstan | $40,546,000 | +11.4% |
| 58. | Tanzania | $40,420,000 | +85.9% |
| 59. | Finland | $39,328,000 | +72.9% |
| 60. | Bangladesh | $38,066,000 | +43.6% |
| 61. | Latvia | $25,858,000 | +14.4% |
| 62. | Brazil | $24,916,000 | +53.1% |
| 63. | Kuwait | $24,585,000 | -39% |
| 64. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $24,176,000 | +5.3% |
| 65. | Dominican Republic | $24,127,000 | +18.5% |
| 66. | Philippines | $22,631,000 | +256.1% |
| 67. | Argentina | $20,858,000 | -6.2% |
| 68. | Jamaica | $20,259,000 | +19.1% |
| 69. | Israel | $19,421,000 | -5% |
| 70. | Peru | $18,202,000 | -2.3% |
| 71. | Colombia | $17,916,000 | +26.6% |
| 72. | Morocco | $17,912,000 | +43.4% |
| 73. | Tunisia | $16,812,000 | -13.8% |
| 74. | Senegal | $14,749,000 | -27% |
| 75. | Cyprus | $14,703,000 | +8.6% |
| 76. | Togo | $14,461,000 | +21% |
| 77. | Estonia | $13,731,000 | +46.6% |
| 78. | Sri Lanka | $13,505,000 | +65.9% |
| 79. | Norway | $10,883,000 | +18.5% |
| 80. | Guyana | $10,463,000 | +769% |
| 81. | Laos | $10,327,000 | +23.1% |
| 82. | Algeria | $9,504,000 | +83.4% |
| 83. | Egypt | $9,315,000 | -32.8% |
| 84. | Kenya | $8,939,000 | +74.4% |
| 85. | North Macedonia | $8,822,000 | -59.2% |
| 86. | Oman | $8,337,000 | -61.4% |
| 87. | Honduras | $8,122,000 | -43.2% |
| 88. | Ghana | $7,955,000 | +20.6% |
| 89. | Moldova | $6,209,000 | +82% |
| 90. | Bhutan | $5,618,000 | +57.6% |
| 91. | Armenia | $5,299,000 | +46.3% |
| 92. | Iran | $5,079,000 | -31% |
| 93. | Malta | $4,827,000 | +366.8% |
| 94. | Jordan | $4,363,000 | -61.2% |
| 95. | Barbados | $3,950,000 | +83.9% |
| 96. | Kyrgyzstan | $3,581,000 | +40.3% |
| 97. | Tajikistan | $3,242,000 | +9.2% |
| 98. | Eswatini | $3,149,000 | +9.6% |
| 99. | Albania | $2,892,000 | -26.3% |
| 100. | Ecuador | $2,687,000 | +16.9% |
Focusing on the 100 major suppliers of soft drinks on international markets, there were 5 suppliers that posted triple-digit gains in their revenues from globally exported soft drinks. The major gainers were Guyana (up 769% from 2020), Malta (up 366.8%), Philippines (up 256.1%), India (up 119.7%) then Slovakia (up 113.8%).
You can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of the above table’s columns. An entry of 0% in the right-most column means that 2020 data was unavailable.
See also Coffee Exports by Country, Tea Imports by Country, Sugar Exports by Country, Natural Honey Exports by Country and Top Milk Exporting Countries
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on August 9, 2022
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 9, 2022
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on August 9, 2022
Wikipedia, List of soft drink producers. Accessed on August 9, 2022
