The German beverage company is reportedly pursuing legal action against the Liverpool-based firm for approximately £2 million, citing alleged production deficiencies.
As initially reported by The Telegraph, Capri-Sun accuses Princes of failing to meet agreed-upon juice production levels, leading to unmet orders from major retailers.
In total, Capri-Sun claims that these production issues have resulted in a financial loss amounting to around £2.7 million in revenue and approximately £847,000 in profit.
Earlier this year, both the European and UK divisions of Capri-Sun filed a lawsuit, asserting that Princes breached two contracts established in 2024.
The claims regarding Princes’ failure to meet production requirements pertain to a five-month span during that year.
Capri-Sun points out that several of the UK’s top retailers, including Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Asda, were affected by this situation.
In response, Princes Group has stated that it “does not accept the claims as presented.”
Legal representative Noel Casey KC, acting for Capri-Sun, mentioned in court filings: “Consequently, the claimants have been unable to fulfil, in whole or in part, orders received from a significant number of retailers including but not limited to Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda, Iceland, Ocado, Morrisons, Farmfoods, Co-op and Amazon.
“This led to shortages of Capri-Sun products at numerous retailers, with certain resellers running out of Capri-Sun products completely.
“During this period, the claimants were unable to fulfil orders for several hundred thousand cases.
“The claimants estimate their lost revenue from this period to be approximately £2,676,778.18 and their lost profits to be approximately £847,202.11.”
Capri-Sun’s legal team further argues that Princes breached multiple aspects of the agreements, particularly through a “unilateral suspension of production and delivery” in January 2026.
Casey highlighted that a warehousing and distribution agreement was established in January 2024, followed by a co-manufacturing deal two months later.
He alleged that in January 2026, Princes halted the production and delivery of Capri-Sun items until a sum of £2.583 million was paid.
Although production resumed later, Capri-Sun claims Princes indicated another potential pause in manufacturing.
Consequently, Capri-Sun is pursuing damages, an injunction mandating continued production by Princes, and a statement asserting that the £2.6 million debt is unfounded.
Casey also stated that manufactured product lines from Princes failed to achieve efficiency benchmarks, which impacted its ability to “produce the quantities of Capri-Sun products required.”
This resulted in an estimated shortfall of about 1.3 million cases from what was agreed upon in both 2024 and 2025, with an additional drop of 800,000 anticipated in 2026, according to Capri-Sun’s legal representatives.
Further allegations suggest that Princes did not adequately safeguard or account for stock, leading to around £85,000 of product classified as waste.
Capri-Sun also mentioned that a manufacturing error by Princes triggered a product recall in Northern Ireland last month, due to some batches being mislabeled as sugar-free.
A spokesperson from Princes Group stated: “Princes Group does not accept the claims as presented and intends to defend the proceedings.
“As this matter is currently before the court, it would not be suitable to comment on the specific allegations or any potential future legal actions.
“Princes will clarify its stance through the proper legal channels.”
