Coca-Cola to Launch Hard Seltzer Drink
30 Julio 2020 - 12:42PM
Noticias Dow Jones
By Jennifer Maloney
Coca-Cola Co. said it plans to launch a boozy version of its
Topo Chico sparkling water in the U.S. next year, plunging the soda
giant into the market for alcoholic beverages.
With the move, the company joins the fray of beverage giants
vying for market share as consumers flock to hard seltzer for its
minimal calories and lower alcohol level. Americans spent $3
billion on hard seltzer in U.S. retail stores in the 52 weeks ended
July 11, up 241% from a year earlier, according to Bump Williams
Consulting Co.
The market is dominated by White Claw, owned by Mike's Hard
Lemonade Co. Boston Beer Co. makes Truly, the No. 2 brand. Anheuser
Busch InBev NV and other big brewers have also introduced hard
seltzer brands, including Bud Light Seltzer and Corona Hard
Seltzer.
It has been decades since Coke sold booze in the U.S. The
company previously owned a wine business that it sold in 1983. In
2018, Coke introduced a fizzy, lemon-flavored alcoholic drink in
Japan called Lemon-Do.
Coke "is committed to exploring new products in dynamic beverage
categories, including hard seltzer," the company said in a
statement posted on its website. "Topo Chico Hard Seltzer is an
experimental drink inspired by Topo Chico sparkling mineral water,
which has been popular with many mixologists."
Coke will pilot the alcoholic Topo Chico drink in Latin America
later this year, the company said. News of the new product was
reported earlier by Beverage Digest, an industry publication.
Alcohol distribution is tightly regulated in the U.S. A Coke
spokeswoman said the company hasn't finalized how it will
distribute hard seltzer, which falls under the same regulatory
category as beer. Some Coke distributors already hold licenses to
carry beer.
Under James Quincey, who became chief executive in 2017, Coke
has expanded beyond its core soft-drink franchises. It has launched
coffee-infused sodas and an energy-drink version of its namesake
cola, despite objections from its partner Monster Beverage Corp. It
is also pruning some niche products, such as its Odwalla smoothies
and juices.
During the pandemic, the company's biggest soda brands --
including Coke, Coke Zero Sugar and Sprite -- have sold well in
grocery stores but have taken a hit from a steep drop-off in soda
fountain sales.
Write to Jennifer Maloney at jennifer.maloney@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 30, 2020 13:27 ET (17:27 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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