Why the US Isn't on the Fanta Bandwagon

People in Africa, Europe, and Latin America love Fanta; in Africa, its sales are second only to Coca-Cola's. So why is the soda languishing in the No. 8 spot in the United States? Partially because it was introduced in Europe years earlier and wasn’t pushed in the US for fear it might undermine Coke. In fact, from the mid-1980s to 2001, Coca-Cola stopped selling it in the US except in areas with large immigrant populations, writes Brian Palmer for Slate’s Explainer column.

It probably doesn’t help that “the original Fanta was a Nazi product,” developed by the German Coca-Cola chief to replace newly unavailable Coca-Cola syrup after Pearl Harbor. It was discontinued after the war, but 10 years later Coca-Cola revived the brand to compete with Pepsi, which had already started introducing new flavors while Coke still sold just one. Soda on the brain? Check out some of the grossest flavors ever here.
(More Fanta stories.)