Bottled water market eyes 97.6 billion lira revenue in 2026, volume may fall short of forecast

Speaking on behalf of SUDER, Kalebaşı said the bottled water market in Türkiye has contracted and that this is directly reflected in consumption volumes in Istanbul. Noting that the sector's nine-month consolidated data is still being compiled, Kalebaşı said that, according to historical and periodic projections, Istanbul alone accounts for roughly 30 to 35 percent of total bottled water consumption nationwide.

Per capita consumption and Istanbul

According to Kalebaşı, annual per capita bottled water consumption across Türkiye in 2025 was 132 liters in total, made up of 70 liters of PET-glass and 62 liters of carboy water. In 2026, the average is expected to decline slightly because of the summer drop. In Istanbul, per capita consumption stays above the national average thanks to the fast pace of life, the wide out-of-home consumption network and the convenience of bottled water.

Kalebaşı said the cool summer months reduced consumption and that economic conditions affected budget priorities. He added that Istanbul's heavy tourist volume and seasonal population movements in summer also cause fluctuations in consumption. Due to out-of-home mobility and small household sizes in the city, the share of PET and single-use products is expected to exceed 55 percent and overtake carboy water.

Revenue and volume expectations

At retail prices, sector revenue across Türkiye reached 78.1 billion lira in 2025. For 2026, it is projected to rise to 97.6 billion lira, helped by inflation. Istanbul's retail revenue is estimated to reach about 35 billion lira in 2026. Kalebaşı attributed this to high consumption tonnage, high unit prices and logistics costs.

The water market volume in Türkiye is expected to reach about 11.7 billion liters in 2026, with 5.3 billion liters from carboys and 6.4 billion liters from PET. However, due to periodic contractions, year-end volume is forecast to fall below these projections, while revenue is expected to finish close to budget forecasts thanks to price adjustments. Kalebaşı said they expect the market and economic balances to be more stable in 2027, with deferred demand and normalizing climate conditions supporting volume growth.

Employment, digitalization and the environment

Kalebaşı said the sector is an important source of employment, with more than 15 thousand people employed directly and nearly 100 thousand in total. Noting that consumer habits are digitalizing rapidly, he said the traditional phone order method in Istanbul is quickly giving way to mobile apps, online platforms and smart subscription models.

Kalebaşı said SUDER sees nationwide, effective implementation of the Deposit Management System, which aims to collect packaging waste at source and recycle it at high rates, as an important step, and that the system enabling bottle-to-bottle recycling would contribute to protecting natural resources and the circular economy. Noting that Türkiye is now a water-stressed country because of the global climate crisis, he said:

SUDER member companies carefully protect water resources on the principle of zero water loss. Our sector continues its R&D work and investments to increase the use of recyclable materials in packaging.

Kalebaşı