Are there different recipes for Coke in different countries?
The final syrup is the same but the amount of sugar or sweetners may differ in other countries. The actual production and distribution of Coca-Cola follows a franchising model. The Coca-Cola Company only produces a syrup concentrate, which it sells to various bottlers throughout the world who hold Coca-Cola franchises for one or more geographical areas. The bottlers produce the final drink by mixing the syrup with filtered water and sugar (or artificial sweeteners) and fill it into cans and bottles, which the bottlers then sell and distribute to retail stores, vending machines, restaurants and food service distributors. The bottlers are normally also responsible for all advertisement and other sales initiatives within their areas. The Coca-Cola Company owns minority shares in some of its largest franchisees, like Coca-Cola Enterprises and Coca-Cola FEMSA, but almost half of the volume sold in the world is produced by fully independent bottlers. As sugar and sweeteners are added by the
The syrup concentrate is the same. What differs is the water and the sweetners, both in quantity and type. In the US, they now use high fructose corn syrup instead of sugar, and it makes it taste like crap. I don’t know why, but it makes me think I’m drinking liquid nylon. In many other countries — where sugarcane or sugar beets are more common and corn is not heavily subsidized by the government, sugar is still used. Back in Chicago I use to shop in “little Mexico” (Round Lake Beach) where the Mexican shopkeepers would import glass-bottled, cane-sugar sweetened Coke from Mexico, because the Mexicans quite wisely wouldn’t drink the American crap.
I’ve been to the Coca Cola museum in Atlanta, GA and have learned about the coke production in different countries. There are different variations of coke, but the coke formula stays the same. Coca Cola imports its products, and doesn’t make different recipes for different countries. There is only one coke formula.
