Coca-Cola’s algorithmic orange juice

Simply Orange juice is actually not all that simple. The taste of the the Coca-Cola-owned brand is governed by a complex algorithm that allows for the 600+ juice flavors to be tweaked throughout the year to ensure consistency. I liked The Atlantic Wire’s take on the news:

The explanation behind Coke’s complicated new orange juice scheme is nothing short of ironic. Basically, all of their customers are realizing the soda is really bad for you, so demand is shifting to healthy — or at least healthy-seeming — alternatives like juice. Coke also figured out that people are willing to pay 25 percent more for juice that’s not processed, that is, not made from concentrate. Enter Simply Orange. It is indeed just oranges, but boy have those oranges been through hell and back.

This is like White Zombie’s More Human Than Human except More Orange Juice Than Orange Juice.

Note: Illustration by Chris Piascik…prints & more are available.

Update: I updated the post above to point to Businessweek’s original report on Coke’s OJ business.

• Coca-Cola
• food