COCA-Cola has announced it is to break with a 125-year tradition and produce an alcoholic drink for the first time.
The soft beverage-maker plans to sell the low-alcohol product in Japan, where there has been a growing demand for alcopop-style drinks.
However, it is unlikely the drink will be available for sale abroad, with senior executives saying it will likely stay exclusive to Japan.
The country's fast-moving and competitive consumer culture means that products have to be innovative to stay relevant, and Coca-Cola's decision to make an alcopop is firmly part of this trend.
Each year the company releases more than 100 different variations on its traditional drinks in Japan - with new flavours and bottle designs appearing and disappearing from shelves each month.
Last year, it launched a version of Coke with added fiber, called Coca-Cola Plus, with Japan’s ageing population in mind.
It is keen to cash in on the country's taste for Chu-Hi - canned sparkling flavoured drinks given a kick with a local spirit called shochu.
The product is typically between 3 per cent and 8 per cent alcohol by volume, similar to beer.
The popular soft drinks company decided to experiment with a beverage in the Chu-Hi category in Japan according to Jorge Garduno, the president of Coca-Cola’s Japan business unit, after seeing the success other drink makers such as Suntory and Kirin were having.
In an interview on the company's website, he said that the decision to make an alcoholic drink was "a modest experiment for a specific slice of our market."
Mr Garduno said: "The Japanese market is incredibly dynamic, fiercely competitive and rooted in innovation. Because of this, our team is constantly looking at ways to experiment, both from a product standpoint and finding new ways to do business with our customers.
"Consumers here look for variety and want to experiment. We also have categories that are much bigger here than in most of the world.
"In the fourth quarter of 2017 alone, we ran dozens of new, key initiatives and programs, from launching new bottle designs to testing new products and flavours. This is how it is all the time."
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