Coca-Cola confirms plans for new cane sugar soda in US market after Trump touts 'REAL Cane Sugar' Coke
Coca-Cola (KO) said drinks with real cane sugar are coming to its US portfolio this fall, but the high fructose corn syrup that is a staple in its current lineup is still here to stay.
"It's an 'and,' not an 'or,'" Coca-Cola CFO John Murphy told Yahoo Finance on Tuesday. "[Cane sugar is] another option to offer a consumer here in the United States that's continuously looking for more choice."
The confirmation from Coca-Cola comes less than a week after President Trump took to social media to announce the company would be using "REAL Cane Sugar" in its drinks in the US. At the time, the company said it appreciated the president's enthusiasm for its drinks.
On Tuesday, Coca-Cola reported earnings for its second quarter that topped forecasts, with adjusted earnings per share coming in at $ 0.87, higher than the $0.83 analysts had expected, according to Bloomberg data.
Adjusted revenue in the quarter tallied $12.62 billion compared to forecasts for $12.55 billion. The company said its 5% increase in net revenues were driven by a 6% increase in prices and its mix of goods sold, along with a 1% decline in concentrate sales.
Coke shares were down about 1.2% in premarket trade following the results.
Global unit case volume fell 1% in the quarter, led by a 3% decline in Asia Pacific. Volumes declined 2% in Latin America and 1% in North America. A 3% volume increase growth in Europe, Middle East, and Africa offset the declines.
"Overall in Europe...we've seen the benefits of some of our more developing markets in the equation," Murphy said. Murphy added, however, that developed economies in Western Europe were "performing more like the United States."
The company also updated its guidance, saying it now expects adjusted earnings per share to rise 3% against the $2.88 it reported a year ago. Its revenue for the year is now expected to face a 1%-2% currency headwind, with organic sales still forecast to rise 5%-6% for the year.
"June turned out to be a disappointing month," Murphy said, with tariff uncertainty continuing to create uncertainty into the second half of the year. "We think we can manage absorbing any of the impacts with the various levers that we have at our disposal. It's always a local decision as to how to utilize those levers, but right now, it's something that we factored into our rest of your guidance."
As for when its cane sugar products hit the shelves in the US, the company expects this to happen in the fall, with more details to follow. US consumers may also see this new mix in a glass bottle, which Murphy called an "underutilized option" in the US market.
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