Looking to ditch sugar and plastic, Coca-Cola buys Costa for 3.9 bn pounds

While it's common to drink coffee with sugar, coffee is not in the firing line in the same way as fizzy drinks are

Coca-Cola’s £3.9 billion acquisition of Costa Coffee has made quite a ripple. Atlanta-based Coca-Cola is obviously best known for its soft drinks portfolio, found in supermarkets, kiosks, hotels, bars and restaurants around the world. 

Costa, headquartered in the UK, has 3,800 coffee shops in over 30 countries with about two-thirds in its UK home market. Both companies might be all about beverages, but that’s about the only overlap in their operations.

The logic for Costa’s current owner, Whitbread, is straightforward enough. It was coming under investor pressure to focus on its hotel business and get out