New Coca-Cola Formula
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New Coca-Cola Formula
Coca-Cola is a very popular cola, a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by the Coca-Cola Company, which is often referred to as Coca-Cola or Coke. Coke is one of the world’s most recognizable and widely sold commercial brands; its major rival is Pepsi. Originally intended as a Patent medicine when it was invented in the late 19th century; Coca-Cola was bought out by a businessman Asa Candler, whose aggressive marketing tactics led Coke to its dominance of the world soft drink market throughout the 20th century. Despite being faced with critiques of its health effects and various allegations of wrongdoing by the company, Coca-Cola has remained a popular soft drink well into the first decade of the 21st century.
In 1985, Coca-Cola, amid much publicity, attempted to change the formula of the drink. Some authorities believe that New Coke, as the reformulated drink was called, was invented specifically to respond to its commercial competitor, Pepsi. Double-blind taste tests indicated that most consumers preferred the taste of Pepsi, which has more Lemon oil, less orange oil, and uses vanillin rather than Vanilla to Coke. New Coke was reformulated in a way that emulated Pepsi. Follow-up taste tests revealed that most consumers preferred the taste of New Coke to both Coke and Pepsi. It is unclear what part long-time company president Robert Woodruff played in the reformulation. Goizueta claims that Woodruff endorsed it a few months before his death in 1985. Others have pointed out that, as the two men were alone when the matter was discussed, Goizueta might have misinterpreted the wishes of the dying Woodruff.
The commercial failure of New Coke therefore came as a grievous blow to the management of the Coca-Cola Corporation. It is possible that customers would not have noticed the change if it had been made secretly or gradually, and thus brand loyalty could have been maintained. Coca-Cola management was unprepared, however, for the nostalgic sentiments the drink aroused in the American public, some compared changing the Coke formula to rewriting the American Constitution. The new Coca-Cola formula subsequently caused a public backlash.
Gay Mullins, from Seattle Washington, founded the Old Cola Drinkers of America organization, which attempted to sue the company, and lobbied for the formula of Old Coke to be released into the Public domain. This and other protests caused the company to return to the old formula under the name Coca-Cola Classic on July 10, 1985. The Coca-Cola Company is the world’s largest consumer of natural vanilla extract. When New Coke was introduced in 1985, this had a severe impact on the economy of Madagascar, a prime vanilla exporter, since New Coke used vanillin, a less-expensive synthetic substitute. Purchases of vanilla more than doubled during this period. The flop of the New Coke brought a recovery.
Coca-Cola’s advertising has had a significant impact on American culture, and is frequently credited with the “invention” of the modern image of Santa Claus as an old man in red-and-white garments, however, while the company did in fact