News flash: Coca-Cola is shrinking its bottle sizes and mucking with its formulation in Canada. The result will be a watered-down, smaller drink, all in the interest of being supposedly responsible.
The Globe and Mailsaid, “The change is also in response to consumers’ thirst for fewer calories, the company says.”
For some reason, I highly doubt that. More like Coke’s thirst for more profits.
They are lowering the syrup concentration so that there will be about eight per cent fewer calories. You, too, can do this at home – simply add a few ice cubes. It’s also known as watering down your drink. (Apparently our Coke has been sweeter than the rest of the world’s Coke, so that’s their excuse).
They’re shrinking the single units sizes, too. Bottles and cans are shrinking.
Does anyone who has not consumed a triple rye whiskey with their Coke actually think their prices will come down, too? If so, pour me one, too.
Smaller units for the same money means they can reduce shipping costs, ship more units in the same truck, use less packaging material, less water and less syrup.
We’ve seen this before. Several years ago, those small, tasty flavours of ice cream used to come in a two-litre tub. Then it was 1.8. Then 1.6. I think I have even seen 1.5. In the meantime, prices have stayed the same.
Bacon purveyors have done this in the past year as well. It seems great columnists think alike, since the StarPhoenix’sLes McPherson waxed poetically about it on Jan. 27. Bacon packages are no longer a pound (454 grams) but 375 grams. I have heard that bacon is either in high demand or a shortage. I don’t follow pork markets. But I do know that we’re getting hosed on hogs now.
Back to Coke: if Coca-Cola was really serious about reducing our waistlines and not our wallets, they would substantially, dramatically offer more diet drinks, not cut back on bottle and can sizes or water down current formulations. As a diabetic going on 28 years, one of my largest frustrations in life is going to the corner store for something to drink.
I was at 7-Eleven the other day, desperate to buy something that wasn’t the same coffee, tea or water I had in my house. I wanted something that fizzed.
Well, out of the probably 120 different SKUs (stock keeping units – retailer speak for different products), I could drink maybe 11. And I am tired of those 11: Diet Pepsi, Diet Coke, Diet Dr. Pepper, Diet 7-Up and a few others. I want something, anything, different. I finally settled on one of the two low calorie Gatorades.
There are very few drinks they can’t make in a diet version if they really wanted to. But they don’t, likely because people like their sugar water, as Steve Jobs once famously called it as he poached former president of Pepsi-Cola to run Apple.
“Consumers are looking for less calories and [more] transparency and consistency around the globe,” Michael Samoszewski, vice-president of Coca-Cola’s sparkling business unit in Canada, told the Globe and Mail. “That’s the primary reason why we’re doing this.”
Mr. Samoszewski said the company could find no reason it had developed a sweeter Coke in Canada than in the rest of the world.
Watering down Coke and shortchanging their customers does not provide less calories in a meaningful way. Offering zero or next-to-zero calorie drinks will.
It sure would be interesting to see what Coke’s Canadian profits do in the coming year, with their watered down sugar water.
Perhaps we could buy the world a Coke, and keep it company to toast those results. Would you like some ice with that?
— Brian Zinchuk is editor of Pipeline News. He can be reached at [email protected].
