 Primary logo  Logo used by Kraft | |
| Type | Juice concentrate drink |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Capri Sun Group (Wild),[a] with regional licensees including Kraft |
| Country of origin | Germany |
| Introduced | 22 June 1969 (as Capri-Sonne) |
| Website | capri-sun |
Capri-Sun (UK: /ˈkæpri/ KAP-ree, US: /kəˈpriː/ kə-PREE) is a brand of juice concentrate–based drinks manufactured by the German company Wild and regional licensees. Rudolf Wild invented the drink in 1969 and introduced it in West Germany as Capri-Sonne (a name retired in favor of the English name in 2017). It is now sold in over 100 countries, with licensees including Kraft Foods in the United States (as Capri Sun)[b] and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners in parts of Europe.[c] It is one of the most popular juice brands in the world; as of 2023[update], roughly 6 billion pouches are sold per year globally.
Since its launch, Capri-Sun has been packaged in laminated foil vacuum Doy-N-Pack pouches, with which the brand has become strongly associated. In the United States, these pouches predated the advent of Tetra Brik, in an era when fruit juice was usually sold in large containers. The pouch design has stayed largely the same, but changes in some markets have included transparent bottoms and paper straws, while other container types have been introduced for some products. Capri-Sun is available in varying ranges of flavors in different countries, targeting different national flavor profiles. Globally, its best-known flavor is Orange.
Capri-Sun's main products are high in sugar content, although lower than many competitors. Characterizations of the juice drinks as "all-natural" have led to conflict in several countries between consumer advocates who highlight the high sugar content and low juice percentage and Capri-Sun and its licensees, who have generally maintained that the term correctly describes the ingredients. Disputes over sugar content and "all-natural" status have led to two lawsuits in the United States and the removal of the brand's main line from Tesco shelves in the United Kingdom.
In France, Capri-Sun has figured prominently in rap songs and has been noted as a drink of choice in poor areas. Capri-Sun is often marketed to children, which has earned it a negative award from the consumer advocacy group Foodwatch. In the United States, Kraft and its former parent company, the tobacco conglomerate Philip Morris Cos. (now[update] Altria), have successfully marketed Capri Sun using strategies developed for selling cigarettes to children.[2] American parents often misidentify Capri Sun as healthy, and it is one of the most favorably rated brands among Generation Z Americans.
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- ^ Arthur 2023.
- ^ Nguyen et al. 2019. See also summaries Jacobs 2019a ("tobacco executives, barred from targeting children for cigarette sales, focused their marketing prowess on young people to sell sugary beverages in ways that had not been done before") and Dyson 2019 ("'[T]he Kool-Aid kid program was modeled after a tobacco marketing strategy designed to build allegiance with smokers'[, said Nguyen] ... The tobacco company also purchased Capri Sun and Tang and used similar child-centric marketing strategies to push sales").