Coca-Cola is embracing new drinks - including coffee - as part of its global strategy to counter a slump in its signature fizzy drinks sales.
The company is tackling the might of Starbucks with an entry into the lucrative coffee shop market with a brand of coffees, teas and infusions called Far Coast.
Initially available at a concept store in Toronto, Canada, the hot drinks will soon be ??in other foodservice outlets in the city. Coca-Cola will then roll ?them out to Singapore and Norway in the next few months.
A separate tea brand, ?Chaqwa, has also been developed for more mobile consumption and is being sold in convenience stores.
The company is planning an imminent launch into parts of Europe of much-anticipated green tea brand Enviga, a drink reputed to speed up metabolism and help the body burn calories.
There are no immediate plans to launch any of these brands in the UK and Gary Roethenbaugh, research director at drinks consultancy Zenith International, said Coca-Cola reviewed launches country by country. "The relevance of some of these launches in the UK is to be questioned because the company launches products for local tastes,"
he said.
He added that the market for green tea was being boosted by its high-profile health benefits, but said the UK market was difficult to crack: "Green tea has associated health benefits and I think consumers will buy it in bottles, but it is a slightly different phenomenon in the UK from other countries because of the UK's love for hot tea."
Cola-Cola has already widened its UK portfolio to tap into growing consumer concerns over health. Juice brand Minute Maid relaunched last year, but has so far failed to make a dent in rival PepsiCo's Tropicana brand. Minute Maid is worth around £20m, which is one tenth of Tropicana's value in the UK.
The company is tackling the might of Starbucks with an entry into the lucrative coffee shop market with a brand of coffees, teas and infusions called Far Coast.
Initially available at a concept store in Toronto, Canada, the hot drinks will soon be ??in other foodservice outlets in the city. Coca-Cola will then roll ?them out to Singapore and Norway in the next few months.
A separate tea brand, ?Chaqwa, has also been developed for more mobile consumption and is being sold in convenience stores.
The company is planning an imminent launch into parts of Europe of much-anticipated green tea brand Enviga, a drink reputed to speed up metabolism and help the body burn calories.
There are no immediate plans to launch any of these brands in the UK and Gary Roethenbaugh, research director at drinks consultancy Zenith International, said Coca-Cola reviewed launches country by country. "The relevance of some of these launches in the UK is to be questioned because the company launches products for local tastes,"
he said.
He added that the market for green tea was being boosted by its high-profile health benefits, but said the UK market was difficult to crack: "Green tea has associated health benefits and I think consumers will buy it in bottles, but it is a slightly different phenomenon in the UK from other countries because of the UK's love for hot tea."
Cola-Cola has already widened its UK portfolio to tap into growing consumer concerns over health. Juice brand Minute Maid relaunched last year, but has so far failed to make a dent in rival PepsiCo's Tropicana brand. Minute Maid is worth around £20m, which is one tenth of Tropicana's value in the UK.
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