IBP WORLD NEWS
MEETING THE
GROWING DEMAND
FOR SAFE,
HIGH-QUALITY BEVERAGES IN LIBYA
LIBYAN UNITED BEVERAGE BOTTLING COMPANY,
A LEADING FORCE IN THE LIBYAN BEVERAGE MARKET,
IS EXPANDING THE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH
SIG. THE COLLABORATION IS SET TO BOOST LUBBC’S
PRODUCTION CAPABILITIES, INCREASE LOCAL MARKET
VOLUMES, AND ENHANCE EXPORT OPPORTUNITIES, WHILE
ALSO CONSOLIDATING SIG’S POSITION IN THE REGION.

Under this agreement, SIG will deliver
four additional filling lines for aseptic
carton packs to LUBBC, including a
SIG Midi 12 Aseptic, two SIG XSlim 24
Aseptic, and a SIG Mini 24 Aseptic.

These filling lines will support LUBBC’s
30 expansion plans and meet the growing
demand for safe, high-quality beverages
in Libya. The company already has
two SIG filling lines for aseptic carton
packs in operation and uses them to
successfully fill its Safi brand beverages.

Hamza Abubrig, CEO of LUBBC,
commented, “We are very proud to
choose SIG as our trusted partner. SIG is
developing the solutions and technologies
needed to help ensure access to safe
non-carbonated soft drinks (NCSD) and
liquid dairy (LD) products for people
all over the world. The success of the
Safi brand in Libya over the past few
months has been remarkable, thanks
to the cooperation between the SIG and
LUBBC teams. We are excited to build
on this partnership and continue our
growth journey together.”
This strategic partnership signifies
an advancement for LUBBC, driving
both local growth and international
competitiveness through cutting-edge
packaging technology.

Mohamed Eljamal, Libya Country
Manager at SIG, added, “This partnership
is a key step towards expanding our
presence and strengthening our
market position in the region. We
are delighted seeing more and more
customers in Libya growing with our
industry-leading solutions.”
 www.sig.biz
 +49 2462 790
INTERNATIONAL BOTTLER & PACKER | JUNE 2025



WINES & SPIRITS CHRONICLE
The Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WTSA) Boosts its
Executive Board with a Trio of Industry Experts
Riviera Drinks Buys
Soho Street Cocktails
The Wine and Spirit Trade Association has welcomed three new Board members,
chosen for their different business expertise and perspectives.

Riviera Drinks has acquired
ready-made cocktail brand Soho
Street Cocktails. Riviera Drinks
said the deal marked its “entry
into the B2C market”.

Joining the WSTA Executive Board were a global spirit giant and two SME wine
businesses – one a distributor part-owned by three wineries and the other
representing independent wine merchants.

Starting their three-year terms are Lee James, Managing Director UK, Ireland and
Nordic markets at Rémy Cointreau joins Kim Wilson North South Wines’ Founder and
Managing Director and Hal Wilson, Owner, Cambridge Wine Merchants.

Mark Riley, Chair of the WSTA Board, said, “We are delighted to welcome three
new WSTA board members, who add a fantastic blend of expertise garnered from
their formidable careers in the wine and spirit sector.

It is incredibly important to us to ensure we do our utmost to meet all members’ needs.

Having a diverse range of individuals offering expertise from varying perspectives is crucial
to the WSTA delivering for its membership. We look forward to working with Lee, Kim and
Hal to navigate through what continues to be a challenging time for the UK drinks trade.”
Miles Beale, Chief Executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, said, “The
WSTA is proud of its broad-based membership, which allows us to represent the whole
of the wine and spirit industry supply chain. It’s a great pleasure to welcome aboard
three enthusiastic, talented and experienced new board members, who will be great
representatives for their business types and assets to supporting the work of the WSTA.

Our aim is to give a voice to every wine and spirit business, no matter how big or
small. We are delighted to add to our top table Hal, aka the ‘King of the indies’, Kim,
founder and MD of an award-winning, growing mid-sized distributor, along with such
a seasoned drinks trade expert, in Lee, who works for one of the big global luxury
spirits companies.”
InchDairnie Distillery to Merge with MacDuff International
InchDairnie Distillery is merging its business with Glasgow-based MacDuff
International. The two businesses will be consolidated into a single entity called
InchDairnie Whisky Limited.

Founded in 2015 by Ian Palmer, InchDairnie launched its first whisky brand Ryelaw
in 2023. It has also been producing whisky for MacDuff since its distilling operations
began, manufacturing the group’s brands Islay Mist and Lauder’s.

MacDuff was established in 1992 and manages sales and distribution of
IncDairnie’s Ryleaw brand aside from the UK market, which Disaronno has handled
since March last year.

The new business will be led by Graham Glen, Commercial Managing Director, and
Scott Sneddon, Distilling Managing Director.

Founder Ian Palmer will join Sneddon and Glen on the Board as Chairman.

They will also be joined by Vice-Chairman David Sloan, Operations Director Lesley
Ramage Finance Director Jim Campbell.

In the statement, Glen added, “Islay Mist, Lauder’s and Waterproof, together with
RyeLaw and KinGlassie, with more InchDairnie brands launching over the next four
years, makes for an amazing portfolio of whisky brands to excite the whisky enthusiast.”
InchDairnie and MacDuff’s respective offices in Fife and Glasgow will be retained
following the merger, the InchDairnie Whisky said.

VISIT OUR WEBSITE | www.binstedgroup.com
Up until now, the company has
supplied bars and restaurants with
soft-drinks, syrups, liqueur and
cocktail ingredients.

Riviera Drinks plans to launch
Soho Street Cocktails in a 1.5-litre
bag-in-box format, moving away
from 1.5-litre pouches. The
different packaging is designed to
be more convenient for consumers
and be more sustainable.

The Soho Street Cocktails
portfolio includes flavours such
as Passion Star Martini, Espresso
Martini and Strawberry Daiquiri,
with alcoholic strengths ranging
from 10% to 12% abv.

William Grant to Pause
Tullamore Dew Production
William Grant & Sons is to halt
production for up to three months
this year at its Tullamore Dew
Irish whiskey distillery. Three
of nine stills at the distillery in
Clonminch, County Offaly, will
pause production, followed by
another three stills for a further
three months.

William Grant & Sons bought
Tullamore Dew in 2010 and opened
the Tullamore distillery in 2014. The
site employs around 100 people.

The company continues to
perform well, according to its latest
filings with Companies House,
the UK business register. For the
year ended 31 December 2023, it
reported a turnover of £1.96bn,
with a profit of £444m after tax,
representing a profit growth of 33%.

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