Talk:Sprite (soft drink)

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Contents 1 Fanta Clear Citrus 2 Coca-Cola system 3 Advertising? 4 Colored versions? 5 Sublymonal.com Codes 6 VfD 7 Extreme Makeover - Wikipedia Edition 8 Picture Trouble 9 America-centric 10 Sprite Recharge 11 Question 12 New template image 13 New Bottle 14 "straight edge persuasion"? 15 Popularity with African-Americans 16 Removed virtual vender link 17 Mascot 18 benzene 19 Glass bottle 20 Obey your thirst 21 Added a picture. 22 Chinese Image? 23 History and Origin

[edit] Fanta Clear Citrus

In the Fanta entry on the German-language mirror of Wikipedia, it says that Sprite was originally developed as Fanta Clear Citrus or something like that. Can anyone check my accuracy with the translation so we can add the information here? Zephyrprince 23:59, 6 Mar 2005 (UTC)

I'm never heard that version of origin and it's not consistent with this information from the Australian Coca-Cola website[1]:

"The idea for the name of the lemonade 'Sprite' came from early advertising. During the 1940's, an elf with silver hair and a big smile (and most often wearing a bottle cap for a hat!) was used in advertising for 'Coca-Cola' . This character, known affectionately as "The Little Sprite" urged customers to buy more. In the late 1950's, the Company developed a citrus flavoured drink. The short, sharp and memorable sound of "The Little Sprite" made it an ideal name for the new product. Since another company had been using the name since 1955, the Company had to purchase and register 'Sprite' as its property. In 1961, 'Sprite' made its US debut."

I think some more research is in order before adding anything about Fanta Clear. Autiger 00:26, 7 Mar 2005 (UTC)

• Agreed, Ill try to keep looking for something to back up what I read. Its entirely possible that the soft drink was produced in both countires but with two different recipes each derived individually but brought under the same name after a while. Zephyrprince 02:27, 7 Mar 2005 (UTC)

OMG UR MOM!!!:)

• • There's definitely something wrong about that supposedly German origin. The German Site (http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Getr%C3%A4nkemarken_der_Coca-Cola_GmbH#Sprite) actually says that Sprite was introduced first as "Fanta Clear Citrus" in Germany in 1966 (not 1961, as stated here) and rebranded as "Sprite" in 1968. Nothing about being invented in Germany. Anyway, Sprite seems to have existed in the US since 1961. And a number of sites support the history Autiger describes above. Should be changed IMHO. --91.7.94.104 14:04, 29 October 2007 (UTC) (from Germany)

[edit] Coca-Cola system

what's the Coca-Cola system, as linked in the article? does that justify its own entry? (clem 19:01, 22 Mar 2005 (UTC))

I added that link with plans to add an article but haven't had time to write yet. The Coca-Cola System refers to the distribution mechanism involving multiple companies. TCCC owns the brand and produces syrups. It sells the syrups to (mostly) independent regional bottling companies (bottlers) who then handle distibution to retail outlets. It is pretty similar to a typical manufacturing tiered distribution sytem I guess but it originated (at least in the beverage industry) with TCCC. Autiger 00:36, 11 Apr 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Advertising?

Is this even an apropriate article for an encyclopedia? Seems more like advertising to me. (Coca Cola is the best!).

If you want to remove all the product listings (and companies?) in Wikipedia, you've got a long road ahead of you. Autiger 00:36, 11 Apr 2005 (UTC)

You can help me if you want ;-)

[edit] Colored versions?

"In Estonia, green and blue-colored versions of Sprite, in clear plastic bottles, were marketed from 2003 to 2004. The flavor of the drink was not changed." Green and blue-colored versions were sold in Sweden too. Although I don't know if it exactly was in 2003-2004, but that's highly possible. Does anybody remeber when it was?... 19:48, 29 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Sublymonal.com Codes

Is it nessary to add the Sublymonal codes to the page isnt it important because its a part of their marketing

[edit] VfD

On April 11, 2005, this article was nominated for deletion. The result was keep. See Wikipedia:Votes for deletion/Sprite (soft drink) for a record of the discussion. Mindspillage (spill yours?) 16:25, 24 Apr 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Extreme Makeover - Wikipedia Edition

Last night, I totally made a makeover on the Sprite (soft drink) page. I organized the variations section better, organized the pictures better, and added a "See Also" section. Enjoy! MessedRocker 21:17, May 7, 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Picture Trouble

As I viewed the Sprite page tonight, the pictures were aligned very awkwardly, cutting into the "See Also" and "External Links" section, making them pretty hard to follow. Wasn't quite sure whether that was my browser or the page, but after trying an alternate browser the page still looked strange. I tried to straighten it out a little, moving the pictures into a more natural alignment. I think it looks a little better than the prior format, but certainly still room for improvement. Maybe someone more skilled than me can take a crack at it. Novastarj 02:09, June 7, 2005 (UTC)

[edit] America-centric

The heading and phrase "variations in foreign countries" is inappropriate. It needs to be changed to "global varation" or "variation by country"

Hey foreigner, don't blame the heading on America. Since only Korea, Canada, Belgium, Italy, China, Chile, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Estonia are listed as the foreign countries, most of the world would consider them foreign. In fact, about 4,833,911,802 people would have to agree that they are foreign countries. If you don't agree with the perspective of over 4 billion people regarding the heading, then make the change. You have the power! Xenophobe 04:02, 17 August 2005 (UTC)

• Regardless of how much of the world is foreign to those countries, the Wikipedia does not have a national point of view and I will be making that change. I though, however, that I would post here first perhaps to stimulate discussion on the issue but I guess all I'll get are jackassic comments from the likes of you. Zephyrprince 04:09, 17 August 2005 (UTC)

Too late. I think I've already solved your problem. Moriori 04:11, August 17, 2005 (UTC)

Seems I hadn't. Pedantry lives, OK! Moriori 04:15, August 17, 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Sprite Recharge

I notice there's not a single mention of Sprite Recharge, the caffeinated energy drink version of Sprite.

Haven't heard anything about it. Feel free to add it if you have information/references on it. Be bold! AUTiger ʃ ^talk/_work 17:16, 14 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Question

I am translating this article to the Hebrew Wikipedia, and i was wondering if there's someone who could explain this sentence to a moresimple English, because it's not clear to me: In the 1980s, many years after Sprite's introduction, Coke pressured its large bottlers that distributed 7 Up to replace the competitor with its own product. --80.230.85.227 23:15, 19 March 2006 (UTC)

I'll take a stab at it. It means that there were several bottling companies distributing 7 Up (a competitor to Sprite), but the Coca-Cola Company pressured them to stop distributing 7 Up and to distribute Sprite instead. JIP | Talk 12:11, 6 April 2006 (UTC)

[edit] New template image

I put a new image of an american can on the main infobox because this is the most commonly seen one. If someone could get a picture of the new can that would be great and then we could label this image as "the old can" --Pacman 17:10, 12 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] New Bottle

There is a news sprite bottle.Seamus215 20:43, 2 June 2006 (UTC)

Yeah, I would like to see an updated picture of a Sprite bottle or can with the new logo. BiggKwell 00:35, 28 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] "straight edge persuasion"?

I understand what that whole sentence and 4th paragraph is trying to say, but i think it could be rewritten in a more professional manner. Red pepper 18:45, 14 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Popularity with African-Americans

If the subject can be handled gingerly, I'm wondering if adding info to the article about Sprite's popularity with African-Americans might make it more comprehensive. It's often seemed to me as if Sprite, like menthol cigarettes, is a product that's generally more popular among African-Americans than among other ethnic groups. There's mainstream cultural evidence of this-Coke has often hired NBA players as spokesmen for the drink, and I've noticed that many soul food restaurants and cookbooks feature desserts that incorporate the beverage (e.g. "Sprite Cake"). The last thing I want to do is get into stereotypes, believe me, but it's an interesting phenomenon. It could be a tail-wagging-the-dog thing, i.e. its popularity in among African-Americans is the result of Coke focusing on them as a target market as they cop to doing in this 2000 Brandweek article ([2]. This article about Coke's attempts to hire more minotities and do more business with minority-owned bottlers and distributors (in response to claims of racism and "glass cielings" within the company) says that 37% of all the Sprite in the U.S. is consumed by African-Americans [3]; other articles online estimate a figure between 36%-40% and a 2000 lawsuit filed against Coke for "glass cieling" policies [4] claims the figure is 25%, or 110 million cases per year (the stat is used in this context to argue that Coke cheerfully rakes in tens of millions of dollars a year from African-Americans while hypocritically denying them opportunities in-house and within the distribution network).Andrewjnyc 05:22, 21 June 2006 (UTC)

UH. No. I think that violates POV. Unless you can come up with statiscists with the info. wich would have to be something like sprite is drunken by 99% African American 1% other.

As long as you have citations for the information, and it seems you have some, you should add it in -Pnkrockr 20:01, 15 November 2006 (UTC)

I think you've got it wrong. White people are stereotyped as loving Sprite, even giving it to their kids as medicine (it works! at least it tastes bad enough that it MUST work) while blacks are stereotyped as loving grape soda. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.122.63.142 (talk) 17:14, 6 September 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Removed virtual vender link

I removed this link ( http://www.virtualvender.coca-cola.com/ft/detail.jsp?region_id=&country_id=&drink_type_id=&all_reg_selected=&brand_id=285] ) from the middle of the page, because it was screwing up the layout. I also didn't see a need for it in the page anyways. If anybody feels the need to add it back, feel free to, but make sure you hide the link. munboy 18:33, 11 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Mascot

What about the mascot they had recently? The funk-ay doll with an afro? I rememner there was an old sprite logo using an irish leprechaun. is that true?? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Hakkon (talk • contribs) 16:19, 29 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] benzene

The history section contained a note on benzene in soft drinks, which I have removed as it was not quite correct:

Recent reports to the FDA indicate that Sprite and other soft drinks may contain levels of benzene above the FDA's tolerated limit for public drinking water. The source of the benzene appears to be from a reaction of citric acid and sodium benzoate, ingredients common in many soft drinks. There has been a call, recently, for soft drink companies to address the toxic chemical reaction that takes place in many similar beverages ^[1].

The concern about the formation of benzene in soft drinks is with regards to the combination of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) (or a related compound, erythorbic acid) and sodium benzoate (a preservative). Sprite does not contain ascorbic acid, although it does contain sodium benzoate. Sprite has not been shown to contain benzene levels above the drinking water limit.

A relevant citation is here: Benzene production from decarboxylation of benzoic acid in the presence of ascorbic acid and a transition-metal catalyst (Gardner & Lawrence, 1993)

Citric acid and benzoates alone have not been shown to be a problem, although some research suggests that if the initial ascorbic acid and sodium benzoate reaction takes place, citric acid can accelerate the formation of benzene. Also, the level of formation of benzene in the drink, if any, is dependent on the drink's exposure to heat and light.

The potentially hazardous combination of benzoate and ascorbic acid has been removed from a great many of the major lemon-lime brands. The best advice is to check the label, but even sodas that have been found to contain benzene should not be a major concern to the average consumer. The levels are far lower than those consumed daily during the course of a normal diet and almost all (but not all) are within the limits for water contamination.

If you are concerned, simply avoid those sodas containing sodium benzoate (or, less commonly, potassium benzoate) and ascorbic acid (also known as vitamin C). Better yet, stick to water for your thirst needs.

See United States Food and Drug Administration: Questions and Answers on the Occurrence of Benzene in Soft Drinks and Other Beverages for further information.

[edit] Glass bottle

The page says that you can only get sprite in a glass bottle from Mexico, Zambia, Australia and New Zealand. But I live in florida and there is a store in my neighborhood that sells them hin glass bottles. Is there anybody else that gets them in glass like I do? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 67.34.190.96 (talk • contribs) 09:28, 19 October 2006 (UTC).

Fixed. AUTiger ʃ ^talk/_work 15:00, 19 October 2006 (UTC)

== I have ==

[edit] Obey your thirst

Shouldnt a reference be made to the slogan 'obey your first'. It was used for severals years here in the UK and is still found on the drink containers.

This slogan also was used in the US. I think it should be added too Superstarwarsfan (talk) 20:32, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Added a picture.

Does it look ok? Superstarwarsfan (talk) 20:31, 9 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Chinese Image?

What is the point of the chinese image at the intro? I could understand it in the variations section. The intro image should be a English type can since this is the English part of wikipedia. What are your thoughts? Dvferret (talk) 21:16, 10 April 2008 (UTC)

Agree 100%. What's the point of having the Chinese image as the headline image of the English article? WAVY 10 Fan (talk) 18:16, 20 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] History and Origin

Looks, as if the history part needs some adding. For example I ran across the article on Leed which seems to have been the down under Coca-Cola lemonade soda before the introduction of the Sprite brand. Since the article on Leed faces deletion, that update should be done soon?

I guess, other markets have had predecessor brands before the global roll out of the Sprite brand? An example mentioned above could be the Fanta Klare Zitrone brand in German markets.

Doesn't anyone from Coca-Cola marketing check these entries regularly to add some real information? If phrased neutrally that could be a valued contribution, couldn't it? 201.239.82.247 (talk) 00:38, 26 April 2008 (UTC)