Soft drink consumption in Bulgaria shrank by five per cent in the three months up to June, extending a one per cent first-quarter decrease, the first since 1997.

Sales slumped by 39 million litres to 755 million from January to June compared with the same period of 2008.

"Consumption of non-alcoholic beverages for the first half of the year shows that the crisis has seriously affected the behaviour of Bulgarian consumers.

"Although the prices of soft drinks have stayed more or less where they were last year, the sector has been pressed by cash-strapped consumers, mounting unemployment and the slack tourist season," said Milcho Boshev, board chairman of the Bulgarian Soft Drinks Association.

Demand for energy and sports drinks has taken the steepest slide, shedding a precipitous 14 per cent in the first half.

Fruit juices and nectars have seen a 12 per cent decline of almost five million litres than a year earlier.

Consumption of non-carbonated drinks shrank by eight per cent, or seven million litres, with only soluble powdered drinks defying the downtrend with a four per cent increase. Sales of bottled water and fizzy drinks fell by four per cent each but "light" drinks pulled off a whopping 24 percent growth.

The Bulgarian soft drinks market is estimated at 1.5 billion leva.

Last year consumption rose by 10.8 per cent from the prior period but if it keeps the swift pace of the downtrend, the market will face closing the year with a two per cent drop in sales, preserving per capita consumption at its last-year level of about 242 litres.

Source: Dnevnik.bg