Canada Dry

Canada Dry is a brand of soft drinks[2] founded in 1904 and owned since 2008 by the American company Dr Pepper Snapple (now Keurig Dr Pepper).[3] For over 100 years, Canada Dry has been known mainly for its ginger ale, though the company also manufactures a number of other soft drinks and mixers. Although Canada Dry originated in Canada, as the brand name suggests, it is now produced in many countries such as the United States, Panama, Mexico, Chile, Costa Rica, Japan, and in a number of countries of Europe and the Middle East.

Canada Dry
Product typeSoft drink
OwnerKeurig Dr Pepper
CountryCanada
Introduced1904 (1904)
MarketsCanada, United States, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru, Europe, Japan, Middle East, Africa
Previous ownersCadbury
(1986–2008)
Canada Dry Ginger Ale Inc.
(1923–1986)
John J. McLaughlin family
(1904–1923)[1]
Websitecanadadry.ca

Etymology

The "Dry" in the brand's name refers to not being sweet, as in a dry wine. When John J. McLaughlin, who first formulated "Canada Dry Pale Ginger Ale", originally made his new soft drink, it was far less sweet than other ginger ales then available; as a result, he labelled it "dry", or it's a reference to a clichéd joke, "Don't drink Canada dry" uttered when someone is taking too long (at your expense and patience) at a waterfountain.[4]

History
A faded Canada Dry sign on the site of a shuttered Iranian confectionery, a victim of the 1979 Revolution, seen in 2011

In 1890, Canadian pharmacist and chemist John J. McLaughlin of Enniskillen, Ontario, after working in a soda factory in Brooklyn, New York,[5] opened a carbonated water plant in Toronto.[1] McLaughlin was the eldest son of Robert McLaughlin, founder of McLaughlin Carriage and McLaughlin Motor Car.[6] In 1904, McLaughlin created "Canada Dry Pale Ginger Ale". Three years later, the drink was appointed to the Viceregal Household of the Governor General of Canada and the label featuring a beaver atop a map of Canada was replaced with the present crown and shield label.[7]

1916 Toronto Star ad for the product

When McLaughlin began shipping his product to New York, it became so popular that he opened a plant in Manhattan shortly thereafter. After McLaughlin's death in 1914, the company was run briefly by his brother, Samuel McLaughlin. P. D. Saylor and Associates bought the business from the McLaughlin family in 1923 and formed Canada Dry Ginger Ale, Inc., a public company.[1]

Canada Dry's popularity as a mixer began during Prohibition, when its flavor helped mask the taste of homemade liquor.[8] In the 1930s, Canada Dry expanded worldwide. From the 1950s onward, the company introduced a larger number of products.

Norton Simon took an interest in the company in 1964, and it merged with Simon's other holdings, the McCall Corporation and Hunt Foods, to form Norton Simon Inc. Dr Pepper bought Canada Dry from Norton Simon in 1982.[9][10] In 1984, Dr Pepper was acquired by Forstmann Little & Company, and Canada Dry was sold to R. J. Reynolds' Del Monte Foods unit to pay off acquisition debt.[11] RJR Nabisco sold its soft drink business to Cadbury Schweppes in 1986. Today, Canada Dry is owned by Keurig Dr Pepper, which was spun off from Cadbury Schweppes in 2008.[1][12]

'Made from Real Ginger' lawsuits

In 2019, Canada Dry faced a false advertisement lawsuit from the U.S. Government.[13] According to researchers, the drink did not have enough ginger for it to have health benefits and for the company to claim that it was "made from real ginger."[13] Instead of defending their ginger content by going to court, they decided to settle by no longer making this claim.[14] Dr Pepper decided to offer payment to those who purchased Canada Dry for personal use since 2013.[15][16]

After the settlement with the U.S. Government, a class-action lawsuit has also been requested in Canada.[17] As of June 2021, Canada Dry still advertised their drinks as "made from real ginger" in Canada.[17] The Supreme Court of British Columbia case was settled with the defendant Canada Dry Mott's Inc. agreeing to pay $200,000, inclusive of all expenses and fees, plus disbursements of $18,607.61, but it did not require the defendant to change its product labelling or advertising for products marketed in Canada. The settlement amount was to be distributed to the class members by way of cy-près donation to the Law Foundation of British Columbia, while two lead plaintiffs, Victor Cardoso and Lionel Ravvin, received $1,500 each.[18][19] On August 9, 2022, Canada Dry announced a new logo on their Canadian Facebook page.[20] As such, it is currently unknown if this logo will be used outside of Canada.

Products
A can of Canada Dry Ginger Ale with the 2010–2022 logo at Lake Louise
Canada Dry building in Saint-Laurent, May 1946
  • Canada Dry Ginger Ale
  • Diet Canada Dry Ginger Ale (rebranded in November 2020 as Canada Dry Zero Sugar)
  • Canada Dry Bold Ginger Ale
  • Canada Dry Ten
  • Canada Dry Ginger Ale and Lemonade
  • Diet Canada Dry Ginger Ale and Lemonade
  • Canada Dry Ginger Ale and Orangeade
  • Canada Dry Club Soda
  • Canada Dry Tonic Water with Quinine
  • Diet Canada Dry Tonic Water with Quinine
  • Canada Dry Bitter Lemon
  • Canada Dry Lime Ricky
  • Canada Dry Tahitian Treat (now just Tahitian Treat)
  • Canada Dry Hi-Spot Apple, Hi-Spot Orange, Hi-Spot Tutti (cherry and fruit punch) and Hi-Spot Lithiated Lemon[21]
  • Canada Dry Golden Cockerel Ginger Beer
  • Canada Dry Sparkling Green Tea Ginger Ale
  • Canada Dry White Tea with Raspberry Ginger Ale
  • Canada Dry Cranberry Ginger Ale
  • Diet Canada Dry Cranberry Ginger Ale
  • Canada Dry Blackberry Ginger Ale
  • Canada Dry Lemon Ginger Ale
  • Canada Dry Sparkling Seltzer Water (unflavored and mineral free)
  • Canada Dry Flavored Sparkling Seltzer Water (Lemon Lime, Mandarin Orange, Raspberry, Triple Berry, Pomegranate Cherry, Peach Mango and Cranberry Lime; all available in low sodium and sodium free varieties) [22]
  • Sussex Golden Ginger Ale
  • Sussex Pale Dry Ginger Ale
  • Sussex Red Oval Ginger Ale
  • Sussex Old English Ginger Beer
  • Sussex Cola
  • Cactus Cooler
  • Purple Passion
  • Canada Dry Lemon Soda
  • Canada Dry Lemon Lime Soda
  • Canada Dry Vanilla Cream Soda
  • Canada Dry Cocoa Cream Soda
  • Canada Dry Wild Cherry Soda
  • Canada Dry Black Cherry Soda
  • Canada Dry Sunripe Orange Soda
  • Canada Dry Mandarin Orange Soda
  • Canada Dry Concord Grape Soda
  • Canada Dry Grapefruit Soda
  • Canada Dry Spur Cola (a caffeine-free cola introduced in 1968,[23] then discontinued in the 1970s)
  • Canada Dry Jamaica Cola
  • Canada Dry Rooti Root Beer
  • Canada Dry Barrelhead Root Beer
  • Canada Dry Wink
  • Canada Dry Pink Wink
  • Canada Dry Collins Mixer
  • Canada Dry Tonic Water Mixer with Quinine
  • Canada Dry Hi-Grape

Brands with limited availability

Limited availability flavors are produced in Pennsauken Township, New Jersey, by Pepsi-Cola/National Brand Beverages and are distributed in southern New Jersey, Delaware, southeastern Pennsylvania, eastern Maryland, and northern Virginia. At one time, the flavors all had uniquely designed labels; but now all of them use the standard Canada Dry crest logo.

Brands with limited availability in the United States include:

  • Canada Dry Pineapple
  • Canada Dry Peach
  • Black Cherry Wishniak
  • Island Lime
  • Wild Cherry
  • Vanilla Cream
  • Blackberry Ginger Ale
  • Cranberry Ginger Ale (nationwide; however, only sold during the Christmas season)

Asia
  • Canada Dry "Dry" Ginger Ale (Japan)

The Middle East

South America

North America
  • Cranberry Ginger Ale (Canada during the Christmas season, although also available in the United States during the Christmas season)
  • Blackberry Ginger Ale (Canada, spring 2016, summer 2022 & 2023; also sold in some U.S. stores as 20 oz. bottles, but not all stores that sell Canada Dry sell the Blackberry variant)
  • Canada Dry Pineapple (U.S.)
  • Canada Dry Peach (U.S.)
  • Black Cherry Wishniak (U.S.)
  • Island Lime (U.S.)
  • Wild Cherry (U.S.)
  • Vanilla Cream (U.S.)
  • Pomegranate (Canada spring time 2023)

Marketing

Nylon Studios produced the song used in the Rabbit's "Jack's Farm" commercial featuring Canada Dry Ginger Ale.[25] A Cantonese version of the ad was also produced.

See also

References

Notes
  1. "History of our Brands". Cadbury. Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved September 11, 2010.
  2. "Ginger Ales, Seltzer Waters, Sodas | Canada Dry". www.canadadry.com. Retrieved May 28, 2016.
  3. "Canada Dry Mott's - Our History". www.canadadrymotts.ca. Retrieved May 28, 2016.
  4. Morris, Evan. From Altoids to Zima: The Surprising Stories Behind 125 Famous Brand Names. Fireside, 2004. p. 23–24.
  5. "The McLaughlins - Sleighs, Buggys, Cars and Ginger Ale". The Clarington Promoter, September 2016, pages 1 and 4. by Myno Van Dyke
  6. Robertson, Heather (October 28, 1995). Driving Force: The McLaughlin Family and the Age of the Car. McClelland & Stewart. ISBN 0-7710-7556-1.
  7. Nader, Ralph; Nadia Milleron; Duff Conacher (September 1, 1992). Canada Firsts. McClelland & Stewart. pp. 96. ISBN 978-0-7710-6713-6.
  8. Witzel, Michael Karl; Gyvel Young-Witzel (May 1998). Soda pop!: from miracle medicine to pop culture. Town Square Books. p. 68. ISBN 978-0-89658-326-9.
  9. "DR PEPPER TO ACQUIRE CANADA DRY". The New York Times, By Barnaby J. Feder September 16, 1981
  10. "Canada Dry Sold to Dr Pepper Co.", The New York Times, February 3, 1982
  11. "Schweppes to Buy Nabisco's Sunkist, Canada Dry Units". Los Angeles Times. June 3, 1986. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
  12. "Keurig Dr Pepper - Canada Dry". Keurig Dr Pepper. Retrieved April 5, 2015.
  13. Drinking, Eating & (January 12, 2019). "Facing false advertising lawsuits, Canada Dry drops claim it is 'made from real ginger' | National Post". Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  14. Drinking, Eating & (January 12, 2019). "Facing false advertising lawsuits, Canada Dry drops claim it is 'made from real ginger' | National Post". Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  15. Aonso, Casey (January 12, 2019). "Canada Dry Is Being Forced To Pay Out Anyone Who Has Bought Their Ginger Ale Since 2013 Because Of This Lawsuit". www.narcity.com. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  16. Canada Dry Ginger Ale Settlements
  17. International, Radio Canada (January 28, 2019). "Canada Dry Ginger Ale- "no ginger" lawsuit settled in U.S., begins in Canada". RCI | English. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  18. B.C. man's lawsuit over marketing of Canada Dry ginger ale settled for $200,000
  19. Cardoso v. Canada Dry Mott’s Inc., 2020 BCSC 1569
  20. "*Drumroll please* Allow us to introduce you to our new logo ✨ New look, same refreshing flavour ➡️~*Roulements de tambour s'il vous plaît* Permettez-nous de vous présenter notre nouveau logo ✨ Nouveau look, même saveur rafraîchissante"
  21. "Display Ad (for Hi-Spot-the delightful lithiated lemon drink)". Daily Boston Globe. April 16, 1948. Archived from the original on August 13, 2002. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
  22. "Keurig Dr Pepper Product Facts". dpsgproductfacts.com. Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  23. "The Milwaukee Journal". Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  24. "CCU - Un Mundo de Sabores » Canada Dry Limón Soda". ccu.cl. Archived from the original on February 6, 2015. Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  25. "Nylon Studios Creates Music for New Canada Dry TV Ad". Nylons Studios. February 28, 2011. Retrieved February 21, 2015.

Bibliography
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