Soft drinks maker Britvic Ireland has become part of Carlsberg following the Danish drinks group's purchase of its parent company, Britvic PLC, for £3.3bn.

Carlsberg will retain Britvic Ireland as a standalone business led by managing director Kevin Donnelly, and no jobs will be cut with the transition.

Britvic Ireland will continue to produce and sell drinks such as Ballygowan, MiWadi, Club, Cidona and TK, and Diageo will continue to sell Carlsberg's alcoholic brands in Ireland.

“Today marks a pivotal milestone in the history of the Carlsberg Group as we welcome the acquisition of Britvic Ireland," said Søren Brinck, EVP for western Europe at Carlsberg.

"Carlsberg Group has extensive and successful experience with soft drinks in various markets, and Britvic Ireland has an exciting portfolio of brands and products that are beloved in the Irish market. 

"With the acquisition, Carlsberg also further strengthens its existing relationship with PepsiCo and will now become their largest bottling partner in Europe."

Donnelly said: “At Britvic Ireland we are very grateful for 16 wonderful years as part of Britvic PLC. We are excited to join the Carlsberg Group, a larger and more global business.

"We look forward to accessing increased investment and capability to continue our growth journey and are confident that this acquisition will bring about exciting opportunities for the development of our brands, teams and operations.”

Britvic reported revenue of £1.9bn and profit after tax of £125.8m for 2024.

Carlberg's acquisition was agreed in July and valued Britvic shares at 1,315 pence. Britvic previously rejected an offer of 1,250 pence per share in June.

Revenue at Carlsberg Group increased 9.2% year-on-year to 73.6bn Danish krone (€9.9bn) in 2023, with operating profit rising 5.2% to 11.1bn krone (€1.5bn).

Photo: Kevin Donnelly. (Pic: Supplied)