Who Owns SodaStream?

SodaStream does not hold independent sustainability certifications that qualify for the allowed sustainability flags. The brand does not appear on the B Lab B Corp directory or hold independently verified certifications for carbon neutrality, recycled materials, or other allowed flags. No independently verified sustainability flags are listed.

SodaStream's core environmental value proposition is reducing single-use plastic bottle waste. The company estimates that SodaStream users prevented approximately 5 billion single-use plastic bottles from entering the environment in 2024. This figure is based on company calculations and has not been independently verified by third-party auditors. The methodology assumes that each SodaStream user would otherwise purchase a certain number of bottled sparkling water or soft drinks per year.

As part of PepsiCo's sustainability framework, SodaStream contributes to PepsiCo's goal of transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy by 2030 and achieving net-zero emissions by 2040. SodaStream's manufacturing facility in Israel has installed solar panels, with a goal of sourcing approximately 10 percent of the facility's energy from solar power. The company has also announced plans to switch its flavor bottles from plastic to metal, targeting a reduction of approximately 200 million plastic bottles.

SodaStream's products are designed for durability and reuse. The reusable carbonation bottles are rated for approximately three years of use, and CO2 cylinders are refillable through an exchange program. This product design reduces waste compared to single-use bottled beverages, though the production and distribution of CO2 cylinders and machines has its own environmental footprint.

The most significant ethical controversy surrounding SodaStream relates to its manufacturing operations in Israel. The company operated a factory in the West Bank settlement of Ma'ale Adumim from the 1990s until 2014. The factory employed Palestinian workers under Israeli military occupation, and the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement targeted SodaStream for operating in an illegal settlement. The company closed the West Bank factory in 2014 and relocated to the Idan Industrial Zone in the Negev desert.

The relocation did not end the controversy. The new factory is located near Rahat, a Bedouin township in the Negev desert. BDS activists argue that the relocation involved the displacement of Palestinian Bedouin communities and that the factory benefits from discriminatory land policies. BDS co-founder Omar Barghouti stated that the boycott would continue because the company "is directly colluding in the ethnic cleansing of Bedouin Palestinian citizens of Israel in the Naqab."

SodaStream has responded to the boycott by emphasizing that its factory in the Negev employs both Jewish and Arab Israeli citizens, including Bedouin workers from nearby communities. The company states that it provides equal pay and benefits to all employees regardless of ethnicity. However, BDS activists maintain that the company's presence in the Negev contributes to the broader displacement of Bedouin communities.

SodaStream has received design awards from independent organizations. These are product design awards, not consumer quality or safety awards.

The SodaStream E-Terra won Gold at the Sydney Design Awards in 2024. The SodaStream Art won Gold at the Sydney Design Awards in 2023. These are design industry awards judged by design professionals, recognizing aesthetic and functional design excellence.

The SodaStream Play system, designed by Yves Behar of fuseproject, received recognition at the International Design Awards. This is a design industry award for product design innovation.

SodaStream Professional received the Design Value Award from the Design Management Institute (DMI). This award recognizes excellence in design thinking and innovation management.

The SodaStream ENSO carbonator and Fizz and Go metal bottle received the Kitchen Innovation Award. This is a trade industry award for kitchen appliance innovation.

No independently verified awards for SodaStream's product quality, safety, or sustainability have been documented from recognized consumer advocacy organizations as of August 2026. The brand's sustainability claims are based on company calculations rather than independent verification.

The most significant controversy in SodaStream's history involves its manufacturing operations in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. From the 1990s until 2014, SodaStream operated a factory in Ma'ale Adumim, an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank. The factory employed Palestinian workers under Israeli military occupation. The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement launched a campaign targeting SodaStream in 2011, calling for consumer boycotts of the company's products.

The BDS campaign had significant financial impact. Between October 2013 and 2014, SodaStream's stock price dropped from approximately $64 per share to approximately $24. Retailers in Europe and North America faced pressure from activists to drop SodaStream products. In its 2014 annual report, CEO Daniel Birnbaum acknowledged the impact, stating that "a number of political groups have called for consumer boycotts of products originating in this disputed territory, including our products."

SodaStream closed its West Bank factory in 2014 and relocated to the Idan Industrial Zone in the Negev desert in 2015. Approximately 500 Palestinian workers lost their jobs as a result of the relocation, though SodaStream stated that it offered to employ some workers at the new location, subject to Israeli permit requirements. The BDS campaign continued after the relocation, arguing that the new factory site was built on land from which Palestinian Bedouin communities had been displaced.

In December 2024, the Unified Patent Court's Local Division in Dusseldorf ruled that Aarke AB, a Swedish competitor, infringed on SodaStream's European Patent EP 1 793 917 B1, which protects carbonation machine technology. The ruling required Aarke to cease selling the infringing products in participating European Patent Convention countries.

In October 2025, SodaStream won a European court ruling against Coca-Cola, Danone, Nestle, and Spadel. The court ruled that SodaStream could continue its ecological marketing campaigns comparing home carbonation to bottled beverages, rejecting the beverage companies' attempt to block the campaigns. The ruling was significant because it allowed SodaStream to continue marketing the environmental benefits of its products against established bottled beverage brands.

SodaStream has faced scrutiny over its environmental claims. Critics have questioned the methodology for calculating avoided plastic bottles, noting that the calculations assume that every SodaStream user would otherwise purchase bottled sparkling water at a specific rate. The net environmental impact of SodaStream, when considering CO2 cylinder production and distribution, may be less favorable than the company's marketing suggests. However, independent lifecycle assessments have generally found that home carbonation has a lower environmental footprint than bottled sparkling water, particularly when cylinders are refilled rather than replaced.

SodaStream has maintained a relatively clean product safety record. No major product safety recalls have been reported in recent years. The company's products undergo testing to comply with international safety standards for pressurized containers and food contact materials.