"coke" news and stories

When Andrew Kim, 18, a student at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, got an assignment to create an eco-friendly product he thought about Coke bottles. At first Kim considered the idea of reusing the bottle in some way but then struck on the concept of redesigning the bottle instead. "I thought about fixing the problem instead of using the problem," he explained to Slashfood. "We have all these bottles and they are not being recycled."

Kim's first innovation was to make the bottles rectangular to facilitate packing and shipping: "All shipping uses rectangular forms so I wanted to use that space to maximum capability," he explained. Kim also suggested that the bottles be nested in shipping and in turn be collapsible when empty so more of them can be sent to be recycled.

Kim, who doesn't drink Coke, thought of redesigning the classic contoured soda bottle because, "everyone else drinks Coke."

Oh and in case you were wondering Kim got a perfect score of 100 for his assignment.

Coca-Cola will return to Costco shelves next week, the Associated Press reports.

The wholesaler dropped the popular soft drink last month due to a pricing dispute, but that's been settled, Costco says.

Costco CFO Richard Galanti told investors Thursday that Coca-Cola would be back "around Monday," the AP said.

"Our signs basically said it all -- until we can provide our members with these products at competitive prices and provide our members with value, we are not prepared to sell it and we are now going to sell it," Galanti told the AP.

Coca-Cola didn't want to make the price cuts Costco wanted in order to keep profits high for the soft drink maker, the AP said.

Were you bothered by the lack of Coca-Cola at Costco? Tell us about it in the comments below.

[Via Associated Press]

Thats right! As fellow blog The Consumerist states,"no, not that kind. Coca-Cola." Earlier this week, a local newspaper of Sweden reported that a woman (who wishes to remain anonymous) living in Malmö will be seeking inpatient treatment for her addiction to the Coca-Cola beverage. Her addiction has caused a variety of health problems, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Momlogic, another blog, states that originally local health authorities recognized her health problem but did not think it was appropriate for her to receive inpatient treatment. Recently, the Administrative Court of Appeals ruled that the woman's addiction to the beverage should be treated at an inpatient facility.

I'm still wondering whether or not this is bogus. It seems to me that there could have been many other causes of this woman's poor health besides her Coca-Cola intake. For example, what else is she consuming and what is her medical history? Check out the poll below to let us know what you think.

Coca-Cola will begin selling products made with Stevia, a zero-calorie sweetener derived from an herb that's gained a following in the heath food community despite not yet being approved by the FDA. Three flavors of Odwalla juice sweetened with a Stevia product called Rebiana are expected to hit the market this week.

Pepsi also has two Stevia-sweetened drinks ready for the market, but they say they won't start selling them until FDA gives Stevia the official OK. The FDA is expected to approve Stevia as "generally regarded as safe" any time now.

Coke hopes that Stevia, which is often described as "all natural" (whatever that means), will help reverse the decline in sales of soft drinks.

I've had Stevia sweetener before, and it didn't taste a whole lot different to me than other artificial sweeteners. But then, I'm a die-hard Diet Coke drinker, so I may not be the target audience.

Has anyone else tasted Stevia? Thoughts?

Source

A few months back, I read Lovemarks, a book about the future of corporate branding. Written by Kevin Roberts, the CEO of Saatchi and Saatchi, the book explored the hard-core loyalty that some customers feel for certain brands. As a Crest kid, a Tom Petty fan and an intense devotee of Kosciusko mustard, I can absolutely attest to the power of brand devotion; on the other hand, as a former Ben and Jerry's booster, I also know just how easy it is for a brand to destroy that relationship.

Of course, the ultimate example of a disastrous rebranding is Coca-Cola's 1985 decision to change its formula. As customers rebelled, the company tried to explain that numerous blind taste tests had revealed that New Coke was a more popular flavor. The mob, of course, was unmoved and, within three months, Coke was back to its old blend.

It's worth noting that Coke's originial justification for changing recipes was its competition with Pepsi. Now, a little over twenty years later, Pepsi is investing in a little rebranding of its own, with a new logo and a new can design. Starting in November, the company will be unrolling a $1.2 billion worldwide campaign to launch its fresh look.