Stories

Thu, 26 Feb 2026

Thu, 26 Feb 2026 The family-owned soda firm that still uses returnable glass bottles

Soft drinks company Twig's Beverage has a loyal following for its old-fashioned approach.

* In the US, 127 billion plastic bottles are purchased every year
* However, one soft drinks firm in Wisconsin, Twig's Beverage, has continued an old school tradition of selling products in returnable glass bottles
* Customers pay a $20 deposit per case of 24 and can even refill their bottles at the factory
* Some bottles have been used for over 60 years and are still going strong
* The company is owned by Keurig Dr Pepper but operates independently, making Sun Drop, a citrus-flavored soft drink developed in the 1940s
* Twig's also makes its own-brand range of fruit sodas using real sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup
* The company is planning to expand sales of its own soda across the Midwest, but will not be returnable in other areas
* Twig's has been family-owned since 1951 and employs 20 people with annual revenues of around $6.5m