Chilsung Cider Regular and
Pepsi Zero Sugar Lime Flavor
Official Sales Begin in March
Lotte Chilsung Beverage has decided to launch 490㎖ "Jumbo Cans" of 'Chilsung Cider Regular' and 'Pepsi Zero Sugar Lime Flavor.' The strategy is to lower the volume and price compared to the 500㎖ PET bottles to reduce consumers' psychological barriers while capturing the demand for canned beverages. The release of the 490㎖ cans is also expected to directly compete with Coca-Cola, which is already selling similar products.
According to industry sources on the 10th, Lotte Chilsung Beverage plans to officially start selling these two products within this month. Although there are differences depending on the sales channels, the products are expected to be available in major sales channels such as convenience stores and supermarkets by March.
Currently, on Lotte Chilsung Beverage's official website, 'Chilsung Mall,' three sizes of Chilsung Cider Regular cans?210㎖, 250㎖, and 350㎖?are sold, while Pepsi Zero Sugar Lime Flavor is available in 210㎖ and 355㎖ cans.
In fact, domestic consumers are more accustomed to volumes close to 500㎖ in PET bottles. However, this move is interpreted as a strategy to respond to the segmented needs of consumers who want to enjoy refreshing canned beverages in large volumes during the upcoming summer season.
In terms of price, the reduced volume is expected to be more reasonable. The previously released 490㎖ Coca-Cola cans are also cheaper than the 500㎖ PET bottles. Both Coca-Cola and Coca-Cola Zero are priced at 2,300 KRW, which is 100 KRW cheaper than the similarly sized 500㎖ PET bottles priced at 2,400 KRW. The price per 100㎖ (460 KRW) is 20 KRW cheaper than the existing PET bottles (480 KRW).
This can also be interpreted as an effort to reduce plastic usage by replacing the 500㎖ PET volume with cans. According to Greenpeace, Lotte Chilsung Beverage was ranked first for three consecutive years since 2021 as the company with the highest disposable plastic emissions in the bottled water and beverage category.
A Lotte Chilsung Beverage official explained, "As consumer demand for large volumes increases, we have introduced large-volume products to expand our market share in the carbonated can market."
This launch is expected to intensify competition with Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola first released 490㎖ cans of 'Coca-Cola' and 'Coca-Cola Zero' during the '2024 Paris Olympics' period in July last year, and due to positive market response, they are now sold regularly through convenience stores and online channels.
In particular, since Pepsi Zero Sugar and Coca-Cola Zero are regarded as representative products that sparked the 'Zero Boom,' competition in the zero-calorie market is expected to become even fiercer. According to Market Link research, the average annual growth rate of zero-calorie carbonated beverages over the past five years is about 30%, contrasting with the approximately 5% growth rate of regular carbonated beverages.
Recently, major domestic beverage companies have also been introducing products with slightly reduced volumes and lower prices. In the past, canned beer was available only in two sizes, 355㎖ and 500㎖, but recently, companies have diversified volumes and are selling various products. HiteJinro's 'Terra' is sold in 250㎖, 360㎖, 369㎖, and 453㎖ sizes, while 'Terra Light' is available in 453㎖ and 490㎖. 'Kelly' also sells 360㎖ and 453㎖ cans.
An industry insider said, "In preparation for the upcoming summer season, major manufacturers of beer and carbonated beverages are showing a trend of diversifying volumes. This has the advantage of minimizing the burden on both manufacturers and consumers."
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