APRIL 22: A Taste Negation 

Profile America — Friday, April 22nd. On this date 37 years ago, executives at one of America’s and the world’s most famous consumer brands were expecting good news on the morrow about a new and improved product. After research, experimentation and extensive taste testing, a reformulated Coca-Cola was launched in 1985. The company was surprised by the negative, noisy consumer reaction, and New Coke became something of a synonym for product failure. The original Coca-Cola was rushed back to retailers by the summer. New Coke staggered on for a time alongside “the Real Thing,” but is no longer available in America. Five-hundred 88 American establishments engage in soft drink manufacturing, employing some 65,000 people in the $37.6 billion a year business. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at www.census.gov.

Sources:

New Coke story, accessed 8/27/2021

Recent market share, accessed 8/27/2021

Soft drink manufacturers and employment, County Business Patterns, NAICS 312111

Receipts, Annual Survey of Manufacturers, NAICS 312111