Lucozade was created in 1927 by a Newcastle chemist as a glucose drink for the sick, and was sold in cellophane-wrapped bottles as something you brought to a hospital bed. It was repositioned as a sports and energy drink from 1983. Suntory bought it with Ribena from GlaxoSmithKline in 2013 for £1.35 billion.
GlaxoSmithKline sold the Lucozade and Ribena business, including the Coleford manufacturing site in Gloucestershire and related inventory, to Suntory Beverage & Food for 1,352 million pounds in cash. GSK booked a profit on disposal of 1,057 million pounds and said the brands would grow better under an owner with drinks distribution in emerging markets. Suntory put them into a new company, Lucozade Ribena Suntory, which began trading in 2014.
No tagged news items yet. Deals, regulatory actions and recalls are added from SEC filings, regulators and trade press; only titles and links are stored.
Headlines link to the original publisher. Brandtree does not reproduce article text.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the parent company of Lucozade?
⌄
The parent company of Lucozade is Suntory, a privately held company headquartered in Japan.
Is Lucozade British or Japanese?
⌄
Lucozade originated in the United Kingdom in 1927, but it is owned today by Suntory, which is headquartered in Japan. So Lucozade is a British-origin brand under Japanese ownership.
When did Suntory buy Lucozade?
⌄
Suntory completed its acquisition of Lucozade on 31 December 2013, after announcing the deal on 9 September 2013. The deal was valued at £1.35 billion.
Is Lucozade still owned by Suntory?
⌄
Yes. As of 16 September 2026, Lucozade is still owned by Suntory. The ownership record was last checked against primary sources on that date.
Sources (3) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.