Urge (soft drink)

Urge
Type Citrus soda
Manufacturer The Coca-Cola Company
Distributor Coca Cola Norway
Country of origin Norway
Introduced May 1996[1]
Color Carotene E160a
Variants Surge, Urge Intense
Related products Vault
Website Urge Intense
Urge

Urge is a citrus flavored soft drink produced by Coca-Cola Norway that was first introduced in Norway in 1996, and later in Denmark and Sweden.[2][3] It is the predecessor of the American soft drink Surge, which was introduced in the USA in 1997.[4] Urge was discontinued in Denmark and Sweden in 2001.[5] In Norway, Urge sales increased greatly over the years reaching a market share near 10%[6] despite receiving no marketing since its initial launch.

Urge was available in Norway in 0.5 L and 1.5 L bottles, and later also in 0.33 L cans, but in Q1 of 1999 the 1.5 L bottles were taken off the market due to unsatisfactory sales.[7] The cans also vanished from the market a few years later, leaving only the 0.5 L bottles. however, Urge 1.5 L bottles were relaunched to the Norwegian market on September 1, 2008. The relaunch is credited to a massive campaign by the consumers on the internet community Facebook.[7] It has a sugar content of 68 grams per 0.5 L bottle.[8]

Urge Intense: Energy drink variant of Urge

Varieties

An energy drink version, Urge Intense, was launched in Q1 2009. It comes in 0.5L cans and has a caffeine content of 32 mg per 100 ml. A raspberry flavored version ("Red Sting") was released from April 2010 to the first quarter of 2012. In May 2012 an orange flavored version was launched ("Inferno") which has since been discontinued.[9] In 2013 a mango flavored version ("Wild Mango") was released.[10]

Nutritional facts
Per 100 ml:[4]
Energy 238 kJ / 56 kcal
Protein 0 g
Carbohydrates 13.5 g
Fat 0 g

References

  1. ↑ Gleason, Mark (23 December 1996). "Coca-Cola faces uphill scramble with Surge intro". Advertising Age. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  2. ↑ Collins, Glenn (16 December 1996). "Coca-Cola, in Direct Attack on Pepsi, to Introduce Challenger to Mountain Dew". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  3. ↑ Millman, Nancy (17 December 1996). "Coke Surges Into Pepsi's Mountainous Dew Territory". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  4. 1 2 "Urge product page on cocacola.no" (in Norwegian). The Coca-Cola Company. Retrieved 5 January 2009.
  5. ↑ Foght, Thomas (16 September 2014). "Coca-Cola giver comeback til kult-sodavand fra 90'erne". Metroexpress (in Danish). Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  6. ↑ Urge focus group held by Coca Cola Company 2007-04-30
  7. 1 2 "Magnus (17) overbeviste Coca-Cola". Retrieved 5 January 2009. (Norwegian)
  8. ↑ Urge 0.5 L bottle label
  9. ↑ "URGE INTENSE INFERNO I BUTIKK!". Retrieved 25 May 2012. (Norwegian)
  10. ↑ "URGE INTENSE Wild Mango!". Retrieved 17 July 2014. (Norwegian)
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