Equipment

Rising packaging costs are putting pressure on drinks manufacturers' margins, according to trading statements this week.

AG Barr, the soft drinks firm that owns Irn-Bru, said packaging materials including plastic, glass and aluminium were increasing in price.

Its views were echoed by Robert Wiseman Dairies, which said plastics costs were "still a concern" and resin had reached a record high of more than £900 per tonne on the Platts Resin index.

"We have been successful in recovering this increased cost in our selling prices over the last few months, but we continue to monitor Platts for any further increases," the firm said.

Meanwhile, AG Barr said that, despite the increases in packaging material costs, it had maintained its gross margins by implementing cost-control measures.

The firm has also commissioned a £17m can line at its Cumbernauld factory and overhauled the packaging of Irn-Bru. However, it closed its factory in Atherton, Lancashire.