Starting out in 1977 as a single bottling operation in Laconia, New Hampshire, Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Northern New England (CCNNE) has grown into one of the nation’s largest Coca-Cola bottlers. CCNNE bottles and sells products owned by The Coca-Cola Company, Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, Monster Energy, BYB and The Moxie Beverage Company. The company operates 10 distribution centers across all six New England states and upstate New York. It also runs a state-of-the-art production center in Londonderry, New Hampshire.
Advancing Sustainability and Community
A relatively new Advisory Member of NERC, CCNNE’s representative Ray Dube, Sustainability Manager, confirmed the company’s interest and commitment to NERC by attending the 2015 Glass Forum in Rhode Island, as well as participating in the NERC Board meeting. CCNNE is taking its commitment a step further by becoming a sponsor and exhibitor for NERC’s Spring 2015 Conference in Princeton, New Jersey.
Mr. Dube states, “Our Company believes that to be a success as a business we must also invest back into the people and planet that allow us to thrive. As a part of our efforts to foster more recycling we have partnered with organizations like NERC.”
CCNNE advances several tenets it holds as integral to its corporate culture. It strives to 
reduce its environmental impact through ongoing efforts to advance recycling and decreased energy consumption in its operations.
“4.5 million pounds of CCNNE's recycled PET bottles were used to make fleece jackets by The North Face and Patagonia,” a recent press release stated. “The Londonderry [NH] plant boasts a 95% recycling diversion rate and in 2015 sold over 8 million pounds of recycled commodities.”
CCNNE also invests back into local communities, in connection with the communities in which it operates is a primary goal for the company. Efforts range from encouraging a volunteer spirit among their employees to donations and sponsorship of nonprofit organizations, hospitals, sports teams, and events.
In CCNNE’s Vision Statement, the company advocates for People, Planet, Portfolio, Partners, and Profit:
To achieve sustainable, long-term growth -
- People: Be a great place to work where people are inspired to be the best they can be.
- Planet: Be a responsible global citizen who makes a difference.
- Portfolio: Bring to northern New England a portfolio of quality, refreshing beverage brands that anticipate and satisfy peoples’ desires and needs and bring a moment of pleasure to their lives.
- Partners: Nurture a winning network of partners and build mutual loyalty by offering quality products and services that exceed our consumer’s and customer’s expectations.
- Profit: Maximize return to shareowners while being mindful of our overall responsibilities.
A Steady Growth
Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Northern New England credits much of their smart growth in the region to the support it receives from their owner, Kirin Holdings Company Ltd. In 1977, the Kirin Brewery Team of Mr. Sato, Mr. Okada and Mr. Asano, along with a gentleman named Roger Williams, purchased what was then Lakes Region Coca-Cola in Laconia, New Hampshire, and called this new venture KW Inc. In early 1988, KW Inc. purchased Coca-Cola of Northern New England Inc. and adopted the name it still holds today.
In 1989, a new production center in Londonderry, New Hampshire, was built. Originally 150,000 square feet, Londonderry Production Center (LPC), has undergone several expansions, and the current state-of-the-art production center is almost 500,000 square feet in size. Since 1993, the Londonderry Production Center has wont the ‘President's Awards for Quality Excellence’ 9 times!
Through further acquisitions and company expansion and investment, CCNNE now employs approximately 1,000 people around the region. It boasts a seven-state presence, with ten sales centers, and a 30,000,000-case core; being one of the largest Coca-Cola bottler in the U.S.
CCNNE offers customers more than 350 different choices of packages, sizes and flavors. Beyond its wide range of sparkling soft drinks, including, of course Coca-Cola, the company also owns and offers an old New England favorite, Moxie. Its other beverages include various seltzers, bottled water, vitamin water, juices, energy drinks, lemonade, ice tea, and more.
Beyond Sustainability
As a bottling company, CCNNE is also aware of the growing interest in the healthfulness and safety of ingredients in food and beverage products. CCNNE has adopted a number of initiatives to address these concerns, including the following:
- A commitment to not advertising to children under the age of 12.
- Adoption of the American Beverage Association’s School Beverage Guidelines:
- Voluntarily “self-policing” beverage choices offered to all U.S. primary and secondary schools.
- Only “good for you” drinks with limited or zero calories are made available to students.
- CCNNE was the first U.S. bottler to be in compliance, changing the product mix sold at over 1,000 schools in its territory.
- “Clear on Calories” packaging initiative:
- Up-front calorie labeling in bold print for each serving size.
- Coca-Cola has added up-front calorie labeling for each serving size to all of our products.
CCNNE has been in existence for more than forty years, and its current sustainability and education activities should help position it as an industry leader for years to come.
