ATLANTA _ Coca-Cola said it is rolling out a new recipe, name and look in North America to replace one of its most successful products _ Coca-Cola Zero.
The Atlanta beverage giant announced the new version during its second-quarter earnings report. It will be called Coca-Cola Zero Sugar. The new cans and bottles, to roll out in August, will also mostly mimic Coca-Cola's traditional red packaging, replacing Coke Zero's mostly black color scheme.
The changes come as Coca-Cola has continued retooling its operations under its new chief executive, James Quincey.
"We got a lot of experimenting going on out there," Quincey said Wednesday in a conference call.
Those changes include Coke's ongoing efforts to sell or transfer most of its remaining bottling operations to new owners.
The company said it is in the process of launching more than 500 new products around the globe this year and introducing existing products in new markets.
The new Coke Zero Sugar is an example of that latter strategy. Coca-Cola said the new version has been growing by double-digit percentages in 25 countries in Europe, Africa and Latin America, including Britain and Mexico.
Coca-Cola launched its original version of the zero-calorie drink in 2005, and it now sells in 160 countries.
