Association of the German Fruit Juice Industry

The Verband der deutschen Fruchtsaft-Industrie e. V. (VdF) — the Association of the German Fruit Juice Industry — is the central trade association for all fruit juice, fruit nectar, vegetable juice and vegetable nectar producers in Germany. It represents the shared interests of the industry at national and international level and keeps its members informed on all current questions affecting the sector. The association was founded on 17 January 1951 in Wiesbaden under the name "Zentralverband der Süßmost- und Obstgetränkeindustrie e. V." Its original mission was to help the industry rebuild after the Second World War by bundling its interests. Following a reorganisation and amendment of its statutes, it was renamed "Verband der deutschen Fruchtsaft-Industrie e. V." in 1965. Today the VdF is headquartered in Bonn and organises a large share of the German fruit juice industry. According to the association's own figures, of roughly 350 fruit juice producers in Germany, 305 companies are organised in the VdF: 183 companies are served directly and a further 122 smaller operations are looked after through four regional associations in cooperation with the VdF. A 2020 snapshot cited by Wikipedia lists 185 fruit juice producers nationwide, of which 173 were ordinary members with 12 affiliated companies, plus 69 supporting members — mostly companies traditionally connected to the fruit juice industry in the fields of semi-finished goods, transport, packaging, mechanical engineering and consulting. Around 141 smaller businesses are additionally served through four regional associations. The VdF's governing bodies are the members' assembly (Mitgliederversammlung), the presidium (Präsidium), the advisory board (Beirat), and the standing and special committees. The members' assembly is the supreme decision-making body and is convened at least once a year. The presidium, consisting of eight members, represents the association in and out of court and decides on all ongoing matters; its members also chair the standing and special committees. The chairman of the advisory board is a member of the presidium by virtue of office. The office (Geschäftsstelle) is led by managing director Klaus Heitlinger, with Judith Hausner heading legal affairs. The presidium includes president Heinrich Reuss (Eckes-Granini Deutschland GmbH), first vice-president Jakob Wagner (Niederrhein-Gold Tersteegen GmbH & Co. KG), second vice-president Guido Kühne (Refresco Deutschland GmbH), and members Andreas Erz (Burkhardt Fruchtsäfte), Martin Heil (Kelterei Heil), Andreas Reimer (riha WeserGold Getränke), Sven Wortmann (Rapp's Kelterei) and Dr. Peter van Nahmen (Obstkelterei van Nahmen). Beyond lobbying, the VdF provides practical industry infrastructure. In 1972 it introduced the association's own reusable bottle pool (VdF-Mehrwegsystem), which standardised returnable glass bottles and stackable crates across the industry. Before 1972 each producer used its own non-interchangeable bottles, which complicated empty-container returns for retailers and consumers. The VdF pool brought enormous rationalisation, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. It offers four returnable white-glass bottle sizes (0.2, 0.5, 0.7 and 1.0 litres); the 1.0-litre bottle is the flagship, accounting for more than 65 percent of all returnable fruit juice bottles and accepted in practically all beverage and supermarkets in Germany. The deposit per bottle has been 15 cents since the introduction of the euro on 1 January 2002. Today around 300 companies in the German fruit juice industry use the VdF reusable system. The VdF is active in European and international standard-setting. It participates in the European fruit juice association A.I.J.N.

The Verband der deutschen Fruchtsaft-Industrie e. V. (VdF) was founded on 17 January 1951 in Wiesbaden as the "Zentralverband der Süßmost- und Obstgetränkeindustrie e. V." Its founding task was to help the German fruit juice industry recover from the Second World War by bundling the sector's interests. In 1965, following a reorganisation and amendment of its statutes, the association was renamed "Verband der deutschen Fruchtsaft-Industrie e. V." and has since operated under that name. A defining moment in the association's history came in 1972, when it introduced the VdF-Mehrwegsystem, a standardised reusable bottle pool. Before 1972, each fruit juice producer worked with its own bottles, which were not interchangeable. The coexistence of different reusable systems made empty-container returns difficult for retailers and consumers. The nationwide VdF reusable system introduced in the early 1970s brought enormous rationalisation of empty-container returns, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises in the fruit juice industry. For consumers, retailers and manufacturers, it has provided a modular system of stackable crates and reusable glass bottles in different sizes for over 40 years. This increased retailers' willingness to stock fruit juices and nectars in reusable bottles, offer them by the crate and take them back. Today around 300 companies in the German fruit juice industry use the VdF reusable system. The deposit per bottle has been 15 cents since the introduction of the euro on 1 January 2002. The system offers four reusable white-glass bottle sizes: 0.2, 0.5, 0.7 and 1.0 litres. The 1.0-litre bottle is the flagship of the system, accounting for more than 65 percent of all reusable fruit juice bottles and accepted in practically all beverage and supermarkets in Germany. Over the decades the VdF has grown into the central representative body of the German fruit juice industry. According to the association's own figures, of roughly 350 fruit juice producers in Germany, 305 companies are organised in the VdF: 183 companies are served directly and a further 122 smaller operations are looked after through four regional associations in cooperation with the VdF. A 2020 snapshot cited by Wikipedia lists 185 fruit juice producers nationwide, of which 173 were ordinary members with 12 affiliated companies, plus 69 supporting members — mostly companies traditionally connected to the fruit juice industry in the fields of semi-finished goods, transport, packaging, mechanical engineering and consulting. Around 141 smaller businesses are additionally served through four regional associations. The association's organs are the members' assembly, the presidium, the advisory board, and the standing and special committees. The members' assembly is the supreme and ultimately decisive body and is convened at least once a year. The presidium represents the association in and out of court and decides on all ongoing matters; it consists of eight members who also chair the standing and special committees. The chairman of the advisory board is a member of the presidium by virtue of office. The advisory board is composed of the president, the chairmen of the regional associations and up to five further entrepreneurs or managing directors of ordinary member companies. The office is led by managing director Klaus Heitlinger, with Judith Hausner heading legal affairs. In the European context, lobbying for the German fruit juice industry at EU level plays a special role today. The VdF is active in the European fruit juice association A.I.J.N. (Association of the Industry of Juices and Nectars from Fruits and Vegetables of the European Union), whose members are 19 national fruit juice associations from EU member states. Many German experts serve as chairmen or members of working groups or committees. The aim of the VdF's participation in A.I.J.N. is to secure quality standards for fruit juices and fruit nectars. The International Federation of Fruit Juice Producers (IFU) was founded in 1949 by the major associations of European fruit juice producers; in 2019 it celebrated its 70th anniversary and now counts over 180 members (associations, companies and universities). The IFU also acts as an official advisory member for the Codex Alimentarius. The VdF uses the packaging testing laboratory of the Versuchs- und Lehranstalt für Brauerei as a contract laboratory for beverage containers. The VdF also serves as a source of industry data and consumer information. Its website reports that per-capita consumption of fruit juice and fruit nectar in Germany was 24 litres in 2024, down 2 litres from the previous year, while Germany remains the world leader in fruit juice consumption. It highlights research from the German Sport University Cologne, Leibniz University Hannover and the University of Vienna showing that consumption of naturally cloudy apple juice can have positive effects on gut health. It also forecasts a Streuobst harvest of around 450,000 tonnes for 2026, depending on rainfall, and reports on the 2025 pressing season, which produced a low apple juice volume with a high organic share at high prices.

• Founded in Wiesbaden as "Zentralverband der Süßmost- und Obstgetränkeindustrie e. V."

• Renamed "Verband der deutschen Fruchtsaft-Industrie e. V." after reorganisation and amendment of statutes

• Introduced the VdF-Mehrwegsystem, a standardised reusable bottle pool for the German fruit juice industry

• Deposit per bottle set at 15 cents with the introduction of the euro

• International Federation of Fruit Juice Producers (IFU), in which VdF participates, celebrates its 70th anniversary

• Wikipedia records 185 fruit juice producers organised in the VdF, including 173 ordinary members and 69 supporting members

• Per-capita fruit juice and nectar consumption in Germany reported at 24 litres

• 2025 pressing season yields low apple juice volume with high organic share at high prices

• VdF forecasts Streuobst harvest of around 450,000 tonnes for 2026

Central national trade association and standards body for the German fruit juice industry, combining lobbying, quality assurance and a shared reusable packaging system.

• VdF-Mehrwegsystem (reusable bottle pool)

  A modular system of stackable crates and reusable glass bottles in four sizes (0.2, 0.5, 0.7 and 1.0 litres), used by around 300 companies in the German fruit juice industry.

• 1.0-litre returnable glass bottle

  The flagship of the VdF reusable system, accounting for over 65 percent of all reusable fruit juice bottles and accepted in practically all German beverage and supermarkets.

• Industry data and statistics

  The VdF publishes consumption data, harvest forecasts and market information for the German fruit juice industry.

• Consumer information and recipes

  The association provides consumer-facing information on fruit juice in nutrition, myths and facts, and recipes.

1. 1Home :: Fruchtsaftfruchtsaft.de
2. 2Über uns :: Fruchtsaftfruchtsaft.de
3. 3Organe :: Fruchtsaftfruchtsaft.de
4. 4Mitglieder :: Fruchtsaftfruchtsaft.de
5. 5Verband der Deutschen Fruchtsaft-Industriewikidata.org
6. 6Verband der deutschen Fruchtsaft-Industriede.wikipedia.org