Coca-Cola India has come out with a lemon juice-based drink, beefing up, in the process, its product offerings under the Minute Maid juice brand.
The new ‘Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh’ will be available in twin-sized packs. The 400 ml PET pack is priced at Rs.15 and the one litre PET at Rs. 40.
Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh, it is claimed, is made out of fresh lemon juice concentrate. “This will provide consumers a refreshing experience,” company officials further claim.
Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh will be first launched in select outlets and channels in Tamil Nadu. The national launch will happen over a period of time.
This is the first time that Coca-Cola is trying a new juice first in Tamil Nadu, before launching it across the country.
Addressing a press conference here on Monday, T. Krishnakumar, CEO, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt. Ltd., said over the next two months, Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh would be retailed across 35,000 outlets in the State.
Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh will be initially manufactured at the facilities in Gangaikondan in Tamil Nadu and Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh.
The Indian juice market is estimated to be 660 million unit cases, comprising fresh juice (570 million unit cases) and packaged juice (90 million unit cases). Ninety per cent of the packaged segment comprised juice drinks, he said. Mr. Krishnakumar said lemon – at 49 per cent - was the number one flavour in the unpackaged segment.
To a specific question if Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh could be sold in overseas market, Ricardo Fort, Vice-President (Marketing), Coca-Cola India, replied in the affirmative. He said, “Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh has the potential to travel globally.’’ He, however, hastened to add that it all depended on the needs of consumers in specific geographies. “It is best for local consumer needs,” Mr. Ricardo Fort went on to add. Asked if Coca-Cola was a bit slow in introducing this product in the market, he said, “We are not in a race. We are in search for the best product.”
