Swire has been involved in food production and distribution since the 1880s, when it established the Taikoo Sugar Refinery in Hong Kong. Today, group companies play an important role in numerous links in the food chain − from primary production to processing, logistics and distribution.

Swire's first interests in agriculture date back to 1976 and a minority shareholding in James Finlay − one of the world's oldest tea growers, its largest tea trader, and now also the largest supplier of fresh cut flowers and green beans to UK supermarkets. Today, Finlays, with agribusiness interests in Africa, Sri Lanka and Mainland China, is a wholly-owned Swire subsidiary.

Soft drink production and distribution is one of Swire's core activities. Our partnership with The Coca-Cola Company began in 1965. Today, Swire Beverages holds the franchise to manufacture, market and distribute Coca-Cola products in Hong Kong, Mainland China, Taiwan and the Western part of the USA, selling over 900 million unit cases of Coca-Cola products annually. Swire Beverages is one of the largest Coca-Cola bottlers in the world and works closely with The Coca-Cola Company on brand development and marketing.

Another core Swire business is cold storage and logistics and the group is the largest operator of refrigerated warehousing in Australia and Vietnam, ranking as No.3 in the USA, and with expanding interests in this sector in Mainland China and Sri Lanka. In Papua New Guinea, Swire subsidiary Steamships Trading has significant food and beverage manufacturing, packaging, import and distribution interests. Meanwhile, Taikoo Sugar remains Hong Kong's best-loved brand.