Afri-Cola
Encyclopedia
Afri-Cola is a cola
soft drink
produced in Germany
. The trademark
Afri-Cola was registered in 1931 by the company F. Blumhoffer Nachfolger GmbH. The same company also produced Bluna
, an orange soft drink. Today the brand belongs to the Mineralbrunnen Überkingen-Teinach AG. Afri-Cola was once one of the most popular cola brands in Germany, but has considerably lost market share since the 1960s
.
Today the rights to Afri-Cola and Bluna are owned by Mineralbrunnen Überkingen-Teinach AG
. This company tried, in 1998, to use the retro trend to reintegrate these products into the German market, with some notable success to date. The taste of the 1998 drink, however, differed from that of the original. Also, the caffeine
content was 250 mg/L up until 1998, which is unusually high. At the re-release, it had a content below 150 mg/L so that the content does not need to be listed on the bottle.
However, the new recipe was unpopular. The mixture was again changed to taste more like the original one, the caffeine content was increased in 2005 to around 200 mg/L and caffeine was again listed as an ingredient on the label. This mixture was also not sufficiently successful and on April 1, 2006 the company changed back to the original recipe, with caffeine content of 250 mg/L.
and Fukola Cola. In the late 1990s it was widely available at convenience stores and supermarkets in Seattle, and is available in several cafes in Minneapolis. Mineralbrunnen Überkingen-Teinach AG itself exports Afri-Cola to Austria
, France
, Saudi Arabia
, Switzerland
and the Czech Republic
.
Cola
Cola is a carbonated beverage that was typically flavored by the kola nut as well as vanilla and other flavorings, however, some colas are now flavored artificially. It became popular worldwide after druggist John Pemberton invented Coca-Cola in 1886...
soft drink
Soft drink
A soft drink is a non-alcoholic beverage that typically contains water , a sweetener, and a flavoring agent...
produced in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The trademark
Trademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
Afri-Cola was registered in 1931 by the company F. Blumhoffer Nachfolger GmbH. The same company also produced Bluna
Bluna
Bluna is an orange soft drink produced by the German Mineralbrunnen Überkingen-Teinach AG, the same company, which produces the better-known Afri-Cola, since 1994....
, an orange soft drink. Today the brand belongs to the Mineralbrunnen Überkingen-Teinach AG. Afri-Cola was once one of the most popular cola brands in Germany, but has considerably lost market share since the 1960s
1960s
The 1960s was the decade that started on January 1, 1960, and ended on December 31, 1969. It was the seventh decade of the 20th century.The 1960s term also refers to an era more often called The Sixties, denoting the complex of inter-related cultural and political trends across the globe...
.
History
In the hard competition of the 60s, Afri-Cola lost its influence on the German market. The commercial designer and photographer Charles Wilp started a marketing campaign to regain its image.Today the rights to Afri-Cola and Bluna are owned by Mineralbrunnen Überkingen-Teinach AG
Aktiengesellschaft
Aktiengesellschaft is a German term that refers to a corporation that is limited by shares, i.e. owned by shareholders, and may be traded on a stock market. The term is used in Germany, Austria and Switzerland...
. This company tried, in 1998, to use the retro trend to reintegrate these products into the German market, with some notable success to date. The taste of the 1998 drink, however, differed from that of the original. Also, the caffeine
Caffeine
Caffeine is a bitter, white crystalline xanthine alkaloid that acts as a stimulant drug. Caffeine is found in varying quantities in the seeds, leaves, and fruit of some plants, where it acts as a natural pesticide that paralyzes and kills certain insects feeding on the plants...
content was 250 mg/L up until 1998, which is unusually high. At the re-release, it had a content below 150 mg/L so that the content does not need to be listed on the bottle.
However, the new recipe was unpopular. The mixture was again changed to taste more like the original one, the caffeine content was increased in 2005 to around 200 mg/L and caffeine was again listed as an ingredient on the label. This mixture was also not sufficiently successful and on April 1, 2006 the company changed back to the original recipe, with caffeine content of 250 mg/L.
Availability outside Germany
In the mid-1990s Real Soda LLC, a U.S. company, started importing Afri-Cola into the United States, largely in the Seattle area. At the time it was marketed as "highest caffeine content allowed by law" and positioned to compete with such high caffeine colas as Jolt ColaJolt Cola
Jolt Cola was a carbonated soft drink produced by Wet Planet Beverages. It was created in 1985 by C. J. Rapp as a highly caffeinated cola. It is targeted towards students and young professionals, stressing its use as a stimulant in a similar manner as energy drinks...
and Fukola Cola. In the late 1990s it was widely available at convenience stores and supermarkets in Seattle, and is available in several cafes in Minneapolis. Mineralbrunnen Überkingen-Teinach AG itself exports Afri-Cola to Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
.