Coca-Cola confirms a cane-sugar version of its trademark cola is coming to the US this fall
Coca-Cola said Tuesday it will add a cane-sugar version of its trademark cola to its U.S. lineup this fall, confirming a recent announcement by President Donald Trump.
Trump said in a social media post last week that Coca-Cola had agreed to use real cane sugar in its flagship product in the U.S. instead of high-fructose corn syrup. Coke didn’t immediately confirm the change, but promised new offerings soon.
On Tuesday, Coca-Cola Chairman and CEO James Quincey said Coke will expand its product range “to reflect consumer interest in differentiated experiences.” Coke currently sells Mexican Coke, which is made with cane sugar, in the U.S.
“We appreciate the president’s enthusiasm for our Coca-Cola brand,” Quincey said in a conference call with investors Tuesday. “This addition is designed to complement our strong core portfolio and offer more choice across occasions and preferences.”
In an interview before Coca-Cola's announcement, John Bode, President and CEO of the Corn Refiners Association, which counts Illinois-based industrial corn refiners like Premient among its members, told the Sun-Times that the brand potentially switching to cane sugar had spurred concern among stakeholders.
"If [consumers] hear concern about some ingredient, there's a tendency to just short cut and assume there's some reason for that," he said.
Citing a study commissioned by the association on the cost of moving away from high-fructose corn syrup in the U.S., Bode said that Illinois would be one of the hardest hit states, with an adverse impact of $797 million.
Replacing the sweetener also raised questions about how to meet increased demand for cane sugar, he added.
"We have no doubt that Coca-Cola can source enough U.S. cane sugar to meet its needs, but increased use of U.S. cane sugar is certain to lead to a corresponding increase in imports of foreign cane sugar," Bode said in a statement Tuesday. "Replacing high fructose corn syrup with cane sugar would cost thousands of American food manufacturing jobs, depress farm income, and expand the trade deficit.
Coca-Cola reported better-than-expected earnings in the second quarter as higher prices offset weaker sales volumes.
Revenue for the Atlanta company rose 1% to $12.5 billion. Adjusted for one-time items, quarterly revenue was $12.6 billion. That was in line with Wall Street’s forecast, according to analysts polled by FactSet.
Coke said Tuesday it now expects full-year adjusted earnings to grow 8%. At the start of the year, Coke had expected earnings to grow 8% to 10%, but in April it lowered that range to 7% to 9%. Coke earned $2.88 per share in 2024.
Shares of Coca-Cola Co. were down slightly early Tuesday as were all major U.S. markets.
Contributing: Janani Jana