Bulgarian Soft Drink Association - Activities of The Association

Activities of The Association

• Undertaking measures for preferences and alleviation in the field of economic policy for the members of the Association regarding taxation, customs tariff, foreign trade administration and others;
• Development and assistance of the regional trade activities, especially manufacturing and distribution in the field of non-alcoholic beverages;
• The organization and distribution of technical and economic information and intelligence for assisting/helping members of the Association in management and technical progress of their activity;
• Organizing and participation in exhibitions, trade fairs and other forums in the country and abroad; assisting partnership and cooperation with companies – manufacturers of raw materials, ingredients, equipment, packaging and other;
• Implementation of specialized activities and the taking of measures for protecting the environment, as well those that are meant to reduce the negative influence of production on the environment and on the people’s health;
• Organization, coordination and harmonization of approaches and intentions of members of the Association for the activities of the home and international markets, providing information and analysis of markets and consumer demand;
• Establishing and maintaining relations with ministries and departments, educational institutions and institutes with the view of assisting/helping the activities of members of the Association in the field of education and professional qualification/training of staff and employees.

At the moment the Association has 46 members with total market share – carbonated soft drinks 75%, bottled water 85%, non-carbonated soft drinks 80%, and juices 50%. The total market share of the members of the Association is over 70%. This indicates that its members are the main manufacturers of drinks in Bulgaria. Beside manufacturers of drinks in the Association membership has companies-manufacturers of packages, raw materials and additives for the non-alcoholic beverages industry.

The Association publishes an annual advertising and information booklet, the ‘Year-book’. One of the tasks of the Association is to conduct continuous research on the development and changes of the soft drink market in Bulgaria, which is published in the annual report. The Association is the initiator of organizing the annual competition of 'soft drink of the year', of which the interest is continuously growing.

To assist the manufacturers of non-alcoholic beverages industry models of Good Manufacturing Practices, HACCP system for safety of the beverages, Guidance for good hygienic practices at the offering of bottled water for systems hot/cold water are developed. The Association is organizer of many discussions and conferences in the field of food legislation, good practices, plans for food safety, adoption of international standards ISO. BSDA cooperates with all government and non-government institutions and organizations, which are related to the industry. With expert standpoint the Association takes part actively in discussion of normative documents, including the Food Law and the concomitant regulations. Of interest to the members and the industry are introduced and made specific amendments in texts of laws and regulations.

The Association is a member of the Union of European Beverages Associations (UNESDA) since 1996. The Association is a member of the Bulgarian Industrial Association, Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Bulgarian Association of Food and Drink Industry, Union of Food Industry at the Federation of the Scientific -Technical Associations in Bulgaria.