Cox News Service
Published on: 03/12/08
MEXICO CITY — Coca-Cola has reformulated the Mexican version of Coca-Cola Zero, removing a controversial artificial sweetener that is banned in the United States and caused an outcry from consumer advocates in Mexico.
The company said the change will give the diet drink a taste closer to that of Coca-Cola Classic, and had nothing to do with concerns over sodium cyclamate, a sweetener banned in the United States 39 years ago by the Food and Drug Administration after lab findings suggested cyclamate posed a cancer risk.
Sodium cyclamate, which is legal in more than 50 countries, including Mexico, Canada and the European Union nations, was replaced in Coke Zero in Mexico with a combination of two other artificial sweeteners, aspartame and acesulfame-K.
New bottles and cans bear the legend "Without Cyclamate" in Spanish.
Rafael Fernandez, director of communications for Coca-Cola Mexico, said the change was not spurred by criticisms from consumers.
"The formula changed because we have developed something that more approaches the original taste of Coca-Cola Classic," Fernandez said. "There was a campaign (against sodium cyclamate), this is true, but cyclamate isn't a problem ... It's a perfectly safe ingredient."
Fernandez said the new formula also allows Mexican Coke Zero to be preservative-free. "We hope it will be even more successful than the (previous formula)," he said.
The new formula was introduced Feb. 15 and backed by a nationwide ad campaign featuring the slogan "Everything can get better." The formula is still slightly different than the American version, but the same as in several other countries including Chile and Belgium.
Consumer groups are calling the new Coke Zero formula a triumph.
The campaign "evidently affected the image of Coca Cola," Alejandro Calvillo, director of the Power of the Consumer organization, said in an interview. "It's an important signal of the great power that we can exercise as consumers."
Mexico's fledgling consumer rights movement is still relatively small, especially when compared to consumer advocacy in the United States. The Mexican campaign against sodium cyclamate took place largely on the Internet.
After lab studies of rats suggested that cyclamate might increase the risk of bladder cancer in humans, the FDA banned the use of sodium cyclamate in the United States in 1969.
Recent studies have suggested sodium cyclamate, which is prized because it lacks a strong aftertaste, is safe for human consumption. An FDA review of a petition to legalize it is currently on hold while officials await additional information, said an agency spokeswoman in Washington, D.C.
Fernandez said that despite the discontent among some over the use of sodium cyclamate, Coke Zero's original incarnation was successful in Mexico.
While not divulging specific numbers, he said the product exceeded sales expectations by more than 70 percent in first two months after it was launched in July 2006.
Coke Zero is available in about 55 countries and its formula varies from nation to nation. Sodium cyclamate is used in the product in Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Italy and other countries, Coca-Cola spokesperson Blanca Amezcua said.
Mexico is a huge and lucrative market for Coca-Cola. In 2006, Mexico was Coke's second largest market behind the United States. An average Mexican family spends nearly $500 a year on soda products, according to market estimates.
Source: http://www.ajc.com