The independent beverage contract manufacturing sector has spent several years consolidating around two converging pressures: retailer demand for broader category coverage, and brand owner demand for aseptic and better-for-you production capacity. Refresco, already the largest independent beverage solutions provider globally with facilities across North America, Europe, and Australia, had been building toward a transaction that would close both gaps simultaneously.
SunOpta’s performance through 2025 made the case clearly. The company posted revenue of US$205.4 million for the third quarter ended September 27, 2025, representing a 16.8% increase on the prior year. Volume growth of 17% over the same period outpaced most competitors in the plant-based and nutritional segments, with the company attributing the acceleration to category demand and earlier-than-expected conversion of its commercial pipeline.
Refresco has completed its acquisition of SunOpta Inc., making the North American plant-based and aseptic beverage manufacturer a wholly owned subsidiary. SunOpta’s shares have been delisted from both Nasdaq and the Toronto Stock Exchange, marking the formal close of a transaction that reshapes the North American contract beverage landscape.
The deal adds capabilities that sit beyond Refresco’s existing core, particularly in aseptic manufacturing, plant-based formulation, and nutritional beverage development. SunOpta’s route to market spans retail, club, foodservice, and out-of-home channels, a breadth that complements Refresco’s current customer relationships without significant overlap. For more on the category dynamics driving plant-based investment, see Drinkabl.media’s coverage of how health trends are reshaping beverage portfolios globally.
“SunOpta brings exceptional capabilities in plant-based and nutritional beverages, tea, broth, and better-for-you fruit snacks, supported by strong customer partnerships and a highly skilled team. Their expertise complements our existing platform and strengthens our ability to serve customers across more categories, channels, and packaging formats.”
Steve Presley, Chief Executive Officer, Refresco
The strategic logic of the acquisition extends well beyond product categories. SunOpta’s aseptic PET and carton production infrastructure represents a capital-intensive capability that takes years to build organically. By acquiring it, Refresco compresses its North American development timeline considerably and arrives with a proven customer base already embedded in the channels it wants to grow. The acquisition follows a pattern visible across the broader beverage manufacturing sector, where independent co-packers are scaling through acquisition to match the coverage that brand owners increasingly require from single partners.
“We delivered outstanding revenue growth in the third quarter and affirmed the strength of our competitive position, the diversity of our revenue streams, and the robust demand across our portfolio.”
Brian Kocher, former Chief Executive Officer, SunOpta
The financial profile of SunOpta at close reinforces the deal’s logic. Gross profit for the third quarter of 2025 reached US$25.5 million, up 11.4% year on year, while operating income rose to US$6.9 million from US$0.8 million in the prior-year period, reflecting lower variable compensation costs, reduced professional fees, and improved volume leverage. That operational improvement, achieved while the acquisition process was live, signals a business that had already absorbed its restructuring costs and was beginning to convert scale into margin. The non-alcoholic beverage segment has been a consistent driver of M&A globally, with contract manufacturers benefiting as brand owners seek to outsource complexity rather than build it. Refresco’s acquisition of SunOpta mirrors the same dynamic playing out in emerging markets, where packaging and production infrastructure increasingly attracts institutional capital.
With integration now underway, Refresco’s near-term priorities will centre on retaining SunOpta’s customer relationships and fully activating the cross-sell potential of a combined portfolio spanning carbonated soft drinks, juices, RTD teas, energy drinks, sports drinks, plant-based beverages, and nutritional formats across carton, aseptic PET, cans, and glass. SunOpta’s pipeline opportunities, several of which were projected for 2026 but materialised early, give the combined business a commercially active starting point. The real test will be whether Refresco can serve those customers at scale while maintaining the innovation cadence that made SunOpta an attractive target in the first place.
Read More
