Coke consumers who want to avoid corn syrup sometimes opt for Mexican Coke, made with cane sugar. But fans of the drink in the US will have a new option later this year.
“We will launch a Coke sweetened with U.S. cane sugar on the market this fall,” said James Quincey, president and CEO of Coca-Cola, in a conference call with analysts on Tuesday.
The company announced the change in the quarterly earnings report released on Tuesday, describing the new drink as an expansion of its product line. Quincey said the new offering “will complement” Coca-Cola’s main beverage portfolio, suggesting it will arrive as an alternative, not a substitute, for its flagship Coca-Cola product.
Coca-Cola’s initiative comes a week after the White House released a statement from President Trump saying he had spoken with the soft drink giant about using cane sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup in its signature beverage.
“I would like to thank everyone responsible at Coca-Cola. This will be a very good move on their part — You’ll see. It’s simply better!” said Trump.
Trump is a known fan of Diet Coke, a product line sweetened mainly with the artificial sweetener aspartame.
The president’s involvement in the recipe of a popular drink was mentioned on Tuesday’s call, but executives did not elaborate on any communications with the White House.
“As you may have seen last week, we appreciate the president’s enthusiasm for our Coca-Cola brand,” said Quincey.
The use of domestic sugar aligns with Trump’s economic priorities, as he imposed high tariffs on dozens of foreign nations. The sugar’s origin could also affect the drink’s cost: the U.S. sugar industry enjoys substantial market protections against foreign rivals.
“The US has high trade barriers against imported sugar,” as reported by NPR’s Scott Horsley. “As a result, the price of sugar in this country is generally about twice that of the world market.”
Although some U.S. consumers see Mexican Coke as a unique Coca-Cola product that uses cane sugar, Quincey noted that the company already uses the sweetener in several beverages.
“In fact, we use cane sugar in several of our other brands in the U.S. portfolio, from lemonades to teas, some coffee products, some Vitamin Water drinks,” he said.
But he added that Coca-Cola wants to explore new options to meet consumer preferences.
Source: npr.org by Bill Chappell