The Coca-Cola Company is planning to launch a new Coke soft drink using cane sugar, the company’s CEO James Quincey confirmed yesterday (22 July).
Speaking on a company results call for its second-quarter 2025, Quincey said: “Yes, we’re going to be bringing a coke sweetened with US cane sugar into the market this fall, and I think that will be an enduring option for consumers.”
Go deeper with GlobalData
Last week, US President Donald Trump said the company had agreed to use cane sugar in its namesake drinks in the US.
In a post on social media outlet Truth Social, Trump said: “I have been speaking to Coca-Cola about using REAL cane sugar in Coke in the United States, and they have agreed to do so.”
The company’s classic Coca-Cola Original drink is made with high-fructose corn syrup in the US. The product is made with sugar in countries including the UK and Australia, while it contains cane sugar in Mexico.
Quincey told analysts yesterday the company already uses cane sugar in several of its products in the US, such as lemonade, teas and some of its coffee and Vitamin Water brands.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalData“We are definitely looking to use the whole toolbox, the whole toolkit of available sweetening options to some extent, where there are consumer preferences,” he said.
“We know our success rate [is], substantially above the industry. But it’s still a question of it takes time and commitment to build something new.”
There has been growing scrutiny of the recipes of food and beverages sold in the US since President Trump took office in January.
US Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has accused the country’s food and drink industries of “poisoning” Americans. He has also described high-fructose corn syrup as “just a formula for making you obese and diabetic”.
In the three months ended 27 June, the Fuze teas maker saw net revenues grow 1% and 5% organically to $12.5bn. Gross profit was up 3.5% at $7.8bn, while operating income jumped 62.6% on the same period in 2024 to $4.2bn.
The group booked small declines in unit case volumes in Latin America, Asia Pacific and North America, where they dropped 2%, 1% and 3% respectively.
The company’s Bottling Investments segment, which holds its consolidated bottling operations, saw unit case volumes dip 5% in the second quarter.
Coca-Cola attributed the drop to “a decline in India and the impact of refranchising bottling operations.” Operating income also dropped 39% in this business.
Total consolidated unit case volumes dipped 1%.
