Low-cal version of 7 Up to have fizz plus vitamins

NEW YORK (Dow Jones/AP) — As Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo Inc. duke it out this summer with reduced-calorie versions of their flagship colas, Cadbury Schweppes PLC is preparing to carve out its own niche with a low-calorie, vitamin-fortified fizzy drink.

The Dr Pepper/Seven Up division is preparing to roll out a low-calorie version of 7 Up fortified with vitamin C and calcium, according to industry newsletter Beverage Digest.

The lemon-lime soft drink has "the heritage of challenging conventional thinking," Charles Alfaro, a Cadbury Schweppes Americas spokesman, told Dow Jones Newswires.

Alfaro neither confirmed nor denied the Beverage Digest report.

Both Dr Pepper and Cadbury Schweppes Americas are units of Cadbury Schweppes PLC, a London candy and soft drink company.

"As consumer tastes and lifestyles change, 7 Up is looking for ways to change with them by providing beverage choices," Alfaro said.

According to the report, the timing and formulation of the soft drink, which likely will be called 7 Up Plus, have not been finalized. The drink will have 15 calories per 12-ounce serving and may be berry-flavored or introduced in multiple flavors, the report said.

Although vitamin fortification has been common in juice drinks and waters for years, vitamins have not historically been added to mainstream carbonated soft drinks.

The new product comes amid heightened consumer awareness of health and wellness issues. Partly due to concerns about calorie content, sales of sugary, fizzy drinks have been on the decline, with per capita consumption dropping since a peak in 1998.

Meanwhile, comparatively smaller categories such as water, energy drinks and juice-based drinks have been growing. Some attribute the growth to the health benefits consumers perceive from such products.

Coke, of Atlanta, and Pepsi, of Purchase, N.Y., have responded to this trend with reduced-calorie versions of their products. Both Coca-Cola C2 and Pepsi Edge have about half the calories and carbohydrates of their regular counterparts. The drinks will be in stores in June.

However, what Cadbury is considering speaks not only to consumer concerns about carbs and calories, but also to a desire for more nutritional benefits in foods and drinks.

The move also may draw more attention to the 7 Up brand. Last year, 7 Up was the 10th-largest soft drink by volume, but volume declined by 4.2 percent according to Beverage Digest/Maxwell data, as many Pepsi bottlers switched to distributing Pepsi's Sierra Mist instead of 7 Up.

Seven Up's 1.2 percent share of the carbonated soft drink market compares with Sierra Mist with a 1.4 percent share. Sprite, a lemon-lime made by Coke, has a 5.9 percent share of the market, Beverage Digest/Maxwell said.