A lorry containing more than 41,000 bottles of Irn-Bru has been stolen from a depot in Cumbernauld. The bright orange vehicle, loaded with 22 tonnes of the soft drink, was taken from one of the company's partner facilities on Little Drum Road on the evening of Sunday, September 27.
The lorry was later spotted by CCTV driving south of the border and has been sighted in Cumbria. Police Scotland has launched an investigation into the theft.
£30,000 haul branded 'Great Girder Mystery'
The soft drink giant says the haul taken by the "Bru-bandits" was worth £30,000. The stolen cargo consisted of 26 pallets of 500ml bottles of Regular and Zero, adding up to 41,184 bottles.
The theft comes as Irn-Bru has been celebrating iconic ads for its 125th anniversary - including the famous Electric Lady, which sees a gran ram raid a newsagents in a mobility scooter to get her hands on cans. However, Irn-Bru chiefs insist that early indications suggest this was not an elderly woman on a mobility scooter.
Irn-Bru have branded it the "Great Girder Mystery" and asked people to keep an eye out for unexplained amounts of ginger popping up across the nation.
Brand director appeals for information
Kenny Nicholson, Brand Director at IRN-BRU, said: "It was an interesting decision by the robbers, it’s not like a bright coloured IRN-BRU truck is easy to hide. We think they’ve forgotten just how recognised IRN-BRU is - even in England.
"We appreciate their great taste but it’s really not on, we hope they are caught ‘orange handed’ soon, with Police Scotland’s finest on the case.
"The next line of enquiry must be ‘where the truck do you hide 41,000 bottles of BRU?’ If you have spotted anything suspicious, anyone with an unusually high stock of BRU, please get in touch with Police Scotland."
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: "Enquiries are ongoing into the reported theft of a trailer, containing pallets of soft drink bottles, from a premises on Little Drum Road, Cumbernauld, which happened shortly before 6pm on Sunday, 27 September, 2026.
"Anyone with information should report this to us via 101, quoting reference number 1461 of 28 September 2026."
