What's on trend in the non-alcoholic beverage market?

Friday, 01 May, 2026

A 28-year analysis of Australian non-alcoholic drink sales has revealed major shifts in what Australians are choosing to drink, with water and low- and no-sugar carbonated drinks now dominating the beverage aisle. The independent research, which was commissioned by the Australian Beverages Council and conducted by FOODiQ Global, has been now published in the scientific journal Nutrients.

The study examined non-alcoholic, water-based beverage sales in Australia, from 1997 to 2024, building on three previously published studies.^2,3,4 It also provides additional sales data on kombucha, flavoured milk, juice and fruit drinks from 2015 to 2024.

Three key findings from the research included:

Australians are buying fewer sugar-sweetened carbonated drinks and more low- and no-sugar options. In 1997, sugar-sweetened water-based beverages accounted for 70% of the category. By 2024, this figure fell to 35%. In contrast, low- and no-sugar varieties have doubled their market share, from 30 to 65% in the same period.
Water is driving market growth. Still and sparkling water’s market share has grown from 4.8 to 36%, in the 28-year period. In 2024, still and sparkling water outsold sugar-sweetened carbonated soft drinks (36 vs 23% market share).
Less sugar in water-based drinks. The sugar content of water-based drinks has halved (down 54%) since 1997, including a 31% reduction in the sugar content of carbonated soft drinks.

Australian Beverages Council Chief Executive Officer Geoff Parker said the data analysis provides a comprehensive view of how Australia’s beverage market has evolved.

“Australians are making different drinks choices today than they were three decades ago and are actively seeking more low- and no-sugar options,” Parker said.

“These long-term trends reflect sustained, proactive action by the industry to expand the range of drinks available to consumers and reduce sugar across beverage portfolios.”

According to the FOODiQ Global researchers: “There has been a consistent movement away from purchases of sugar-sweetened to those of non-sugar-sweetened and unsweetened varieties, a pattern that appears to have accelerated in 2015, in alignment with the initiation of the industry’s Sugar Reduction Pledge.”

The data showed the rate of decline in sugar-sweetened carbonated drink sales increased by 50% between 2015 and 2024, following the introduction of the Sugar Reduction Pledge,¹ the industry’s voluntary initiative to reduce sugar across portfolios.

“This research underpins the importance of robust, evidence-based policies. It is clear that industry strategies are supporting consumers to make informed decisions about their drink choice without the need for regressive policies that add to already constrained household budgets and that fail to deliver any demonstrable health benefits,” Parker said.

The 28-year trends research findings reinforced and complemented existing national data, including recent ABS consumption findings, which showed the proportion of Australians consuming sugar-sweetened beverages decreased from 43.2% in 1995 to 20.9% in 2023.⁵

The trends research also examined changes across additional beverage categories. Juice consumption declined by 15% between 2015 and 2024. There was a sharper fall in sales of fruit drinks with added sugar, down 27%, compared to sales of 100% juice with no added sugar, down 6%. Australians bought more flavoured milk, with a 37% sales increase, and kombucha was a growing market segment.

_{1. Starck CS, Cassettari T, Beckett E, Fayet-Moore F. Evolving Sweet Preferences: Temporal Trends in Australian Non-Alcoholic Beverage Sales from 1997 to 2024. Nutrients 2026.}
_{2. Levy G., Tapsell L. Shifts in purchasing patterns of non-alcoholic, water-based beverages in Australia, 1997–2006. Nutr. Diet. 2007.}
_{3. Levy G.S., Shrapnel W.S. Quenching Australia’s thirst: A trend analysis of water-based beverage sales from 1997 to 2011. Nutr. Diet. 2014.

4. Shrapnel W.S., Butcher B.E. Sales of Sugar-Sweetened Beverages in Australia: A Trend Analysis from 1997 to 2018. Nutrients 2021.

5. Australian Bureau of Statistics. ‘Food and nutrients.’ ABS, 2023.}

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