UK – Coca-Cola and Costa have launched a chilled ready-to-drink (RTD) Costa Coffee, the first product since Coca-Cola acquired the coffee company earlier this year.

The coffee product is set to debut in the UK from the end of June, building on Coca-Cola’s ambitions of becoming a total beverage company and taps into the soaring popularity of chilled coffee.

Costa Coffee uses Mocha Italia Signature Blend coffee beans and the new RTD range comes in three flavors: Classic Latte, Caramel Latte, and Black Americano.

The new offering contains a double shot of Costa Coffee’s smooth and delicious Mocha-Italia signature blend, to deliver the same Costa Coffee experience without compromising on ‘proper’ coffee taste.

It contains 30% less sugar than other ready-to-drink coffees, with between 15 and 108 calories per 250ml can.

“Our teams at Coca-Cola and Costa Coffee have been working around-the-clock to make our shared vision of Costa Ready-To-Drink coffee a reality,” said Jennifer Mann, Senior Vice President and President of Global Ventures for Coca-Cola.

“This demonstrates the power of our partnership.

It combines the marketing expertise, global scale and distribution credentials of the Coca-Cola system with Costa Coffee’s expertise and capabilities in coffee. The result is a fantastic tasting, ready-to-drink coffee.”

RTD Costa Coffee is said to be made from Rainforest Alliance Certified coffee beans, while the whole range (which will be available soon in 250ml cans) are 100% recyclable.

The range will debut in the UK later this month, followed by launches in Poland and China.

Coca-Cola acquired Costa Coffee to take advantage of the booming coffee beverages segment.

The launch broadens the company’s portfolio, from its core soda range to Coca-Cola Energy drinks, Signature Mixers and Aquarius.

The new range has a reduced calorie count, claiming 30% reduction in sugar compared to other RTD coffees in Great Britain.