Beverage Council NZ

1. Business / Trading Name: New Zealand Beverage Council Incorporated (formerly known as the NZ Juice and Beverage Association, the successor to the NZ Soft Drink Association).

2. Company Number: 630932 (Incorporation Number)

3. NZBN: 9429043200023 (as listed on the Incorporated Societies Register)

4. Entity Type: Incorporated society (non-profit industry association).

5. Business Classification: Industry association for non-alcoholic beverage manufacturers and suppliers (ANZSIC classification falls under food and beverage services/manufacturing).

6. Industry Category: Non-alcoholic beverage sector – includes soft drinks, juices, bottled waters, energy drinks, flavored dairy drinks, etc..

7. Year Founded: 1993 (established as an industry body in 1993). The current incorporated society was constituted in 2003.

8. Addresses: Registered/Mailing address is P.O. Box 47, Auckland 1140, New Zealand. (The NZBC’s contact phone (09 309 6100) and PO Box are shared with the Auckland Business Chamber, indicating a support arrangement or co-location in Auckland.)

9. Website URL: nzbeveragecouncil.org.nz – Official website of the New Zealand Beverage Council.

10. LinkedIn URL: linkedin.com/company/new-zealand-beverage-council – LinkedIn page listing NZBC as a nonprofit with headquarters in Auckland.

11. Company Hub NZ URL: N/A. (The NZBC does not have a profile on Company Hub; relevant information is available via the Companies Office or NZBN registers.)

12. NZ Companies Office URL: https://app.businessregisters.govt.nz/sber-businesses/viewInstance/view.html?id=229a78e05307b6d8bf1b29667f00cb173802cad37156f76f (The Incorporated Societies Register)

13. Social Media URLs: NZBC maintains a LinkedIn page. It also engages via industry media but does not appear to have official public Twitter or Facebook accounts under its own name (its news and updates are often disseminated through partner pages and press releases).

14. Ultimate Holding Company: None. (NZBC is an independent non-profit society, not owned by any single company. It is funded and governed by its member companies.)

15. Key Shareholders: Not applicable (no shareholders – the Council’s “owners” are its members). The member companies effectively fund and control the Council; major beverage manufacturers like Coca-Cola, Frucor Suntory, PepsiCo (via franchisers), Red Bull etc. are prominent members.

16. Leadership (Current and Former): Current: NZBC is led by Co-Chairs Grant Jeffrey and Sagar Rohra (both serving as independent co-chairs). The NZBC Board (Executive Council) includes industry representatives: Sophie Lodge (Frucor Suntory), Nick Sawyer (Sensient Technologies), Ciska de Rijk (Essence Compliance), Andrew Santucci (Red Bull), Georgina Hammond (Coca-Cola ASEAN/SP), and Kerry Jacobs (NZ Sugar). The General Manager position is currently vacant (an interim GM has been in place). Former: Past presidents/chairs include Olly Munro (President in the mid-2010s), Bruce Sherman (Chair around 2019–2021), and earlier leaders under the NZJBA such as David France (President c.2005) and James Wilson (preceding him). Kerry Tyack served as Executive Director of NZJBA in the early 2010s. The leadership has thus transitioned from a traditional President/ED model to a co-chair governance model in recent years.

17. Staff: NZBC operates with a small secretariat. It had a Government Relations & Public Affairs Director, Belinda Milnes, 2022-2024. Administrative and event management support is provided (possibly via the Auckland Chamber partnership). The organisation lists an open role for a General Manager, indicating plans to staff an executive position. In total, LinkedIn indicates 2–10 employees/staff, likely including part-time roles.

18. Staff with Previous Government Roles: Belinda Milnes stands out – before joining NZBC she worked at the highest levels of government, including as Deputy Chief of Staff to two New Zealand Prime Ministers (Bill English and Simon Bridges) and over a decade as a ministerial advisor across numerous portfolios. Her hiring in 2022 brought significant government insider experience into NZBC’s lobbying efforts. Other staff/contractors have backgrounds in public affairs (e.g. former Public Affairs GM Emily Fuller had worked at Retail NZ and on a government recycling working group). There is a notable “revolving door” element in these hires, leveraging government experience for industry advocacy.

19. Past Employees: Emily Fuller – served as NZBC’s General Manager of Public Affairs from 2020 to 2022, during which she was involved in policy engagement (she sat on the Government’s Container Return Scheme working group). She left to return to the USA in 2022. Prior to her, earlier Executive Directors include Kerry Tyack (who was a public face in 2012). Past contractors for communications may have included PR consultants (the NZBC often issues media statements in coordination with PR agencies, though specific names are not public).

20. Clients: Not applicable in the commercial sense. As an industry council, NZBC does not have “clients” but rather members. Its primary constituents are its member companies. (In effect, the beverage companies and suppliers it represents are the ones it serves, analogous to clients.) It does not provide consulting services to external clients; its role is advocacy and member support.

21. Industries/Sectors Represented: The NZBC represents the non-alcoholic beverages industry – encompassing carbonated soft drinks, fruit juices, bottled water, sports and energy drinks, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, flavoured milks, kombucha and other non-alcoholic “refreshments”. Its membership includes both manufacturers and bottlers (e.g. Coke, Pepsi/Frucor, Red Bull, independents like Antipodes Water) and ingredient or packaging suppliers (e.g. NZ Sugar Company, packaging firms like Visy, ingredient firms like IFF, ADM). Collectively, NZBC members account for over 75% of New Zealand’s non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverage sales by volume.

22. Publicly Disclosed Engagements: NZBC regularly participates in government and parliamentary consultation processes. Notably, it made a formal submission to the Tax Working Group in 2018 arguing strongly against a sugar tax and against water royalties on bottling. It was represented on the Ministry for the Environment’s Container Return Scheme design working group (through member company delegates). NZBC also often submits to Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) on proposed standards, and it joined other industry bodies in the government’s 2018–2019 Food Industry Taskforce on Obesity (where it pledged measures like reducing sugar and restricting sales in schools). The Council has engaged with Ministry of Health initiatives (e.g. promoting Health Star Ratings and a “Healthy Kids Pledge”) and is consulted by agencies on beverage-related regulations. Its positions are often on record via press releases and parliamentary submissions (for example, endorsing “water-only” policies in schools or applauding voluntary sugar reduction goals by industry).

23. Affiliations: NZBC is closely affiliated with international and national industry groups. It is the New Zealand member of the International Council of Beverages Associations (ICBA) and interacts with sister organisations (e.g. it hosts ICBA Asia-Pacific webinars for members). NZBC has a formal partnership with the Australian Beverages Council Ltd (ABCL), the Australian counterpart, sharing information and industry strategies. Domestically, NZBC is a member of The Packaging Forum (a packaging industry stewardship group), aligning on recycling initiatives. It also collaborates with the Auckland Business Chamber (as an industry partner that provides it with networking infrastructure and possibly administrative support). In addition, NZBC works alongside the NZ Food & Grocery Council on overlapping issues (both were part of industry responses to health and labeling policies). It is often collectively represented in broad industry coalitions via BusinessNZ and other forums when advocating on regulatory matters (e.g. joint submissions on regulations are sometimes made alongside other business associations).

24. Sponsorships / Collaborations: The Council’s events are supported by corporate sponsors from within its membership. NZBC publicly thanks its Platinum, Gold, and Silver sponsors on its website (though specific sponsor names aren’t listed on the public page, these are typically major companies in the beverage supply chain). NZBC itself sponsors or co-hosts industry workshops – for example, it teamed with The FoodBowl (an Auckland food innovation hub) and member companies to run a Beverage Technology workshop. It collaborates with health agencies for initiatives like the “Fizz” obesity prevention symposium (where it voiced support for water-only schools). The NZBC Conference often partners with media like SupermarketNews (industry magazine) as a media partner. Collaboration with government is usually in the form of consultation rather than financial sponsorship, but NZBC did work with Education and Health Ministries on the 2006 “Schools Beverage Agreement” alongside major firms.

25. Events (Organised by NZBC): NZBC holds an Annual Conference for the industry – for instance, the NZBC 2024 Conference was a “hugely successful” event focusing on industry resilience, and the upcoming 2025 Conference is scheduled for October in Auckland. It also organises seminars and webinars for members, such as technical workshops (e.g. a safety and quality webinar with experts from IDEXX and regular “Marketing regulations” webinars). NZBC hosts networking events and annual general meetings where industry and policymakers sometimes mingle. Under its previous incarnation, it ran annual NZ Juice & Beverage Awards as part of conferences. During COVID, some events went virtual or were postponed, but by 2023–2024 in-person conferences resumed. The Council uses events as a platform to present a united industry front and to discuss policy issues (for example, container deposit schemes were debated at a past NZJBA conference).

26. Political Donations: No direct political donations disclosed in NZBC’s name. As a non-profit trade body, NZBC itself does not appear in the public records of political party donors. Its influence is exerted via lobbying rather than donations. However, member companies of NZBC (such as Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Frucor Suntory, etc.) have individually made political donations or contributions to election campaigns in the past, which indirectly further the industry’s influence. NZBC’s advocacy is thus funded by its members’ dues, not by any political funding. (In New Zealand, industry associations generally lobby through submissions and relationships, and if any donations occur they are usually by corporate members rather than the council itself.)

27. Controversies: NZBC has faced criticism from public health advocates for its defensive stance on sugary drinks and marketing. In 2016, the Council (then NZJBA) ran a media campaign claiming soft drinks are not a major contributor to obesity – a claim heavily criticized as “bad science” and misdirection by experts. The Council’s commissioned survey and infographic were called out for downplaying soft drinks’ role in obesity, leading to pointed questioning on RNZ’s Morning Report of then-President Olly Munro. NZBC has also courted controversy by opposing sugar taxes despite global calls for such taxes to curb obesity – its 2018 submission argued no evidence of health benefits from soda taxes, a position applauded by industry but condemned by public health groups. On water bottling, NZBC took heat for resisting royalties on water exports; President Olly Munro’s remark that singling out water bottlers was “wrong” drew public ire amid debates on companies extracting water for free. The Council’s involvement in voluntary pledges (like only selling water in primary schools) has been met with skepticism as an attempt to stave off stricter regulation. More broadly, NZBC is sometimes accused of “integrity washing” – promoting incremental, voluntary health measures while lobbying against stronger public health regulations. The lack of transparency around its lobbying (since NZ has no mandatory lobbyist register) has also been criticized by governance watchdogs.

28. Other Information of Note (Media and Public Profile): NZBC is the go-to media spokesperson for the non-alcoholic drinks industry. Its statements often feature in news on sugar, obesity, and environmental policy. For example, NZBC’s chair was quoted praising Coca-Cola’s sugar reduction initiative in 2020, and the Council readily provides comments to media on issues like advertising to children or container recycling schemes. It maintains an InfoPages press release feed on Scoop.co.nz, signaling proactive media relations. The Council’s public profile is one of a “modern, responsible industry” voice – it has embraced the Health Star Rating labelling (earning a mention from a Food Safety Minister for adopting HSR on nearly all products) and promotes itself as a partner in health initiatives rather than an adversary. Nevertheless, public health experts and some journalists view NZBC as a powerful lobby; investigative columns have included it when discussing the influence of corporate lobbyists on policy. NZBC also engages in behind-the-scenes government relations: for instance, through OIA requests it was revealed that NZBC and the Australian Beverages Council provided input on healthier drink advice for consumers. The Council’s overall public posture is polished and emphasizes sustainability and choice, but this is often balanced by critical media scrutiny of its actual advocacy.

29. Recipient of Wage Subsidy Scheme: There is no public record of the NZBC itself receiving COVID-19 wage subsidies in 2020; if it did apply, it was not prominently noted (likely because its scale of operations is small). However, the pandemic did impact its activities (conferences, delayed, etc.), and NZBC was actively involved in policy discussions about COVID economic responses (it provided input to government on wage support impacts as part of business sector consultations). Member companies in the hospitality supply chain certainly claimed wage subsidies, but NZBC as an organisation was not highlighted in the official wage subsidy recipient lists. In summary, NZBC was not a notable recipient of the Wage Subsidy Scheme, and its role during COVID was more about advocacy (ensuring beverage businesses were considered in recovery plans) than seeking financial relief for itself.

Sources:

1. About NZBC – We proudly represent New Zealand’s non-alcoholic beverage sector, NZ Beverage Council – NZBC website (2024): NZBC established in 1993 as the industry association for NZ’s non-alcoholic beverage sector.

2. Rules of the New Zealand Beverage Council Incorporated (Constitution, amended Oct 2024), NZBC: Confirms NZBC’s incorporation (originally constituted 6 July 2003) and status under the Incorporated Societies Act.

3. NZBC Privacy Policy (2024), NZ Beverage Council: Lists NZBC’s contact details (PO Box 47 Auckland 1140, email info@nzbeveragecouncil.org.nz) and refers to NZBC Inc.’s compliance with NZ Privacy Act.

4. LinkedIn – New Zealand Beverage Council, LinkedIn.com (retrieved 2025): Shows NZBC as a nonprofit headquartered in Auckland with 2–10 employees; founded 1993.

5. NZBC Appointment of Government Relations and Public Affairs Director, Supermarket News (15 Sep 2022): NZBC hired Belinda Milnes (former Deputy Chief of Staff to PMs English & Bridges) as its Government Relations/Public Affairs Director, citing her “over two decades” in high-level government roles.

6. Food Moves: … NZBC fills govt relations role, Food Ticker (16 Sep 2022): Reports Belinda Milnes’ appointment, noting she replaced Emily Fuller (who returned to the USA).

7. NZBC Announces Appointment of Public Affairs General Manager, Supermarket News (18 Jun 2020): NZBC Chair Bruce Sherman announced Emily Fuller as new GM Public Affairs; Fuller had experience in retail sector and was on the Container Return Scheme working group.

8. The war for water: A battle at boiling point, NZ Herald (21 Mar 2019): Discusses water bottling debates; NZBC President Olly Munro argued it would be wrong to charge water bottlers while others take water free, indicating NZBC’s stance against a water royalty.

9. Forget the milk – those spoonfuls of sugar make more fizzy go down, NZ Herald (30 Jan 2004): Notes that “the Soft Drink Association’s successor, the NZ Juice and Beverage Association,” had stats on the beverage market, confirming NZBC’s former name (NZJBA) and continuity from the soft drink industry body.

10. Energy drink deaths: experts want action, NZ Herald (5 Nov 2012): Features Kerry Tyack, Executive Director of NZ Juice & Beverage Association, defending energy drink makers (stating it’s unfair to criticize manufacturers for highly caffeinated products).

11. Hoo boy, soft drink companies did some really bad science today, The Spinoff (3 Nov 2016): Critiques NZBC’s media campaign downplaying soft drinks’ role in obesity; notes Olly Munro’s claim that data show soft drinks aren’t a significant obesity factor and how Morning Report challenged that as incorrect.

12. NZ Beverage Council responds to UK move on sugar tax, Scoop News (17 Mar 2016): NZBC President Olly Munro expressed disappointment at the UK introducing a soda tax, reiterating NZBC’s stance that education, not taxation, is the answer (implicit in NZBC’s media releases).

13. The NZ Beverage Council supports water-only in primary schools, Scoop News (6 Aug 2020): Press release where Chair Bruce Sherman “fully endorses” calls for primary schools to be water-only, noting NZBC members had committed years earlier to only directly sell water to primary/intermediate schools.

14. Tax Working Group – NZBC Submission (April 2018), released on taxpolicy.ird.govt.nz (2020): NZBC’s official submission to the Tax Working Group. It explicitly opposes a sugar-sweetened beverage tax and water export royalty, arguing there’s insufficient evidence of health benefits from soda taxes and that a water levy targeting bottlers would be discriminatory. NZBC offered to work with government on “better” ways to allocate water.

15. Coca-Cola announces 20% sugar reduction goal, Supermarket News (30 Jan 2020): Coke NZ pledged to cut sugar by 20% by 2025. NZBC Chair Bruce Sherman applauded this move, linking it to the Food Industry Taskforce’s recommendations and “measures manufacturers are taking” for healthier lifestyles.

16. New Zealand Beverage Council – Our Members, NZBC website (2024): Lists NZBC’s diverse membership – from multinationals (Coca-Cola, Frucor Suntory, Pepsi/Charlies, Red Bull) to local producers and suppliers (Antipodes Water, Barker’s, NZ Sugar, Visy etc.), representing 75%+ of NZ’s beverage retail volume.

17. NZBC – Our Council (About Us), NZBC website (2024): Shows current governance – Co-Chairs Grant Jeffrey (Independent) and Sagar Rohra (Independent), and board members from Frucor (Sophie Lodge), Sensient (Nick Sawyer), Essence Compliance (Ciska de Rijk), Red Bull (Andrew Santucci), Coca-Cola (Georgina Hammond), NZ Sugar (Kerry Jacobs). Also notes “General Manager – To be appointed (vacancy on LinkedIn)”.

18. Portfolio: NZBC co-chair on member value, Benefits of Membership, NZBC (2024): NZBC co-chair Grant Jeffrey emphasizes NZBC’s role in giving members a “strong and united voice” to help create conditions for the industry to thrive. Also mentions NZBC’s technical committee managing many submissions to regulators like FSANZ and cites the successful 2024 NZBC Conference focusing on industry resilience.

19. Federated Farmers on water charges vs NZBC, NZ Herald (21 Mar 2019): Federated Farmers’ water spokesperson echoed NZBC’s view that a water charge would be like a big tax on every New Zealander, suggesting coordination in messaging (Federated Farmers: “huge tax on everyone”; NZBC’s Munro: unfair unless all users pay).

20. Summary of Submissions – Priority Products (MfE 2020), Ministry for Environment: In the container recycling scheme consultation, NZBC’s submission (no. 4073) is repeatedly cited among those cautioning or opposing certain measures. E.g., NZBC aligned with Coca-Cola Amatil (4086) and TOMRA in highlighting issues, demonstrating NZBC’s active role in that policy debate.

21. Political Roundup: Shining a light on lobbyists, Dr. Bryce Edwards, Newsroom/Evening Report (30 Nov 2022): Commentary piece that includes NZBC in the context of lobbyist influence in NZ politics, arguing for more transparency in how groups like NZBC and others influence government policy.

Spot anything in this entry that is wrong? Please either leave a comment at the end or email, in confidence: bryce@democracyproject.nz