In order to preserve this secret recipe, Robert Woodruff, the well-known veteran of the Coca-Cola Company, made protecting the secret recipe his top priority when he became the leader of the company in 1923. At that time, Coca-Cola broadcast to the public the process of hiding the handwriting of John Pemberton, the inventor of the drink, in a bank vault, and stated that anyone who wanted to inquire about the secret recipe must first apply through the trust company's board of directors. Only with approval can it be opened within the specified time in the presence of an official.
As of 2000, less than 10 people knew this secret recipe. In its trade with its partners, The Coca-Cola Company only provides semi-finished products to its partners. Manufacturers that obtain its production license can only obtain the technology and methods for formulating the concentrated puree into Coca-Cola finished products, but cannot obtain the formula and production of the original puree. technology.
"7X products" become an absolute secret
In fact, the main ingredients of Coca-Cola are public, including sugar, carbonated water, caramel, phosphoric acid, caffeine, "invalid" Coca leaves, etc., its core technology is the mysterious ingredient that accounts for less than 1% of Coca-Cola - "7X products".
The "7X" information is kept in a vault at a bank in Atlanta. It consists of three key ingredients, each of which is controlled by three senior employees of the company, whose identities are kept strictly confidential.
At the same time, they signed a "never leak" agreement, and even they themselves didn't know what the other two ingredients were. Three people are not allowed to go out on the same vehicle to prevent the secret recipe from being lost in an accident such as a plane crash.
Classic recipes are inevitably embarrassing
Secrets always attract attention. There are several versions of Coca-Cola’s secret recipes circulating on the Internet, and some of them are actually true.
"Wikipedia" counts three versions, one of which is a note found in Pemberton's desk. The note listed Coca-Cola's "entire recipe" in its entirety: 1 ounce of cocaine citrate, 3 ounces of citric acid, 1 fluid ounce of vanillin, 1 quart of lime juice, 2.5 ounces of flavoring, 14 kilograms of sugar, and 4 Fluid ounces of coca extract.
This version also clearly explains the mysterious seasoning: a mixture of seven ingredients including orange juice, cinnamon, lemon, coriander, nutmeg, neroli and alcohol. This version also introduces the seasoning technique, which is to mix caffeine acid and lime juice in 1 quart of boiling water, cool it, add it with the vanilla, and let it cool for 24 hours. The other two versions on Wikipedia are from the pharmacist John Reed and the chemist Joseph Melory.
Facing the speculations of "enthusiastic people", Coca-Cola Company ignored it. For them, keeping secrets means keeping the market. Guided by this secret, The Coca-Cola Company continues to develop new products, enabling it to sell more than 250 million bottles of products around the world every day.
Thank you