Burger King Drops Frozen Coke after Promotion Debacle

Burger King Corp. earlier this month issued a statement announcing that it will phase out frozen carbonated beverages, including Frozen Coke, from its menu.

In June, Coca-Cola, Atlanta, admitted that some of its employees had tampered with a Burger King/Frozen Coke promotion, prompting Coke president and COO Steve Heyer to send a letter to Burger King CEO Brad Blum apologizing for the incident.

The Burger King statement announcing the phase out, issued by Blum to the Burger King system, read in part: "I just wanted to inform you, after careful analysis, Burger King Corporation has determined that frozen carbonated beverages are not strategically relevant to the long-term vision for the Burger King brand. Despite best efforts, the performance of these products has been disappointing. This has led us to make a decision to begin phasing out Frozen Coke and other frozen carbonated beverages in our U.S. restaurants."

The allegation first surfaced in a lawsuit by former Coca-Cola employee Matthew Whitley (Xtra, June 19). That and other accusations in the lawsuit prompted the United States Attorney's office for the Northern District of Georgia to open an investigation of Coca-Cola (Xtra, July 15).