Coca-Cola Innovation: Made From Ice Bottles

Just when I thought beverage companies were all bad, bad, bad, I read about Coca-Cola’s new environmentally friendly bottles made from ice.  Yes, that’s right, Coke has launched an ice bottle “actually made of ice.”

The bottles are being marketed as “eco-friendly” with an ad that is chock full of bikinis and six-pack abs and declares: “No bottles were left in the trash, or on the beach either. No trace, except for the happiness it leaves behind.” Check it out:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRMqwwSQhVY

Beachside Cokes In Ice Bottles

According to the Coca-Cola website, Coke is being served in bottles “actually made from ice” at beaches in Columbia, South America. “The frozen vessels are true to their glass counterparts, keeping with Coca-Cola’s uniquely shaped contour bottle that includes the iconic Spencerian script lettering etched in ice.”

This is what we know about the ice bottle:

1. The ice bottles are made with “micro-filtered water” that is poured into silicone molds, then frozen to -25°C/-13°F. They are shipped empty and servers fill them with soda on site.
2. They have sold 265 frozen bottles an hour on average despite a 90% premium in price.
3. To prevent your fingers from getting stuck to the ice, and in a smart marketing move, each bottle is wrapped with a branded elastic band, which Coca-Cola says the “doubles as a keepsake bracelet fans can wear.”
4. The ice bottles cost almost twice as much to produce as regular ones (hence the premium price)
5. It goes without saying that the production of the ice bottles require more refrigeration and water than conventional bottles.
6. There are no plans to offer it anywhere outside of Columbia.

I would love to see ice bottles come to the United States. Whether ice bottles are actually a truly sustainable alternative to disposable single-use bottles remains to be seen. But, at least Coca-Cola is trying.

Photo screen shot from YouTube