Fanta, the most iconic citrus soda which is known to every human on the planet earth as it has been around for the past eight decades is available in most of the countries around the globe. There are more than 200 flavors of Fanta worldwide as most of the recipes can differ from country to country but  its orange flavor remains the most famous and sought-after when you’re looking for a refreshing drink. This blog will explain the differences between american fanta and fanta available in the UK.

History of Fanta

Fanta was the second product from the world famous Coca Cola Company. Coca Cola  a drink created in 1886 by Dr. John Stith Pemberton, created first as a painkiller, then became largely popular in America in 1895. In 1920, the company’s first European bottling plant opened in France, and by 1929, Coca-Cola was being bottled and drunk in Germany.

And Coca Cola was gaining large popularity among Germany before the Second World War.  Between 1933-39 the numbers of crates of Coke sold in Germany rose from about 100,000 to 4.5 million per year, and 50 factories were built to meet demand inside Germany.

Soon after the war started back in 1939, a lot of sanctions were imposed and most of the supplies were cut off from Germany. One such supply cut off from Germany was coke syrup, the key ingredient to make Coca Cola. Because of this the production of Coca Cola ceased in Germany during the war and the Coca Cola company in Germany was having major losses.

Max Keith, the head of the Coca Cola company in Germany, didn’t want to give up altogether though, he wanted to introduce a new drink from readily available ingredients.

The very first Fanta recipe included scraps and leftovers from various industrial processes. Whey from milk factories and scraps of various fruits, mainly apples, from the fruit pressing factories were added with various other ingredients to make the drink they called Fanta.

The most favorite orange flavor Fanta was introduced later in 1960’s in a bottling plant in Naples Italy which was only using locally sourced citrus fruits.

The story behind the name is also very interesting. The name was chosen in collaboration with Coca Cola HQ in the US, who were not impressed by the product and thought it needed an exciting word to sell it. The director told the staff to use their imagination, fantasize, Fanta originated from the German word Fantastisch, meaning fantastic.

Proving American HQ wrong, Fanta proved vastly popular with the German public, although it was only introduced to the rest of the world several years after the war, reaching global popularity by the 1970.

To date the Coca-Cola Company owns the trademark for Fanta but for some bizarre reason decided to market it in other places as fruit-flavored carbonated drinks, and not actual Fanta.

What is the difference in American Fanta & UK?

At first glance you will notice a difference in color, as Fanta orange is significantly brighter and a more radiant orange color in the US compared to the United Kingdom. This is mainly due to the reason of the ingredients they use between different continents. Let’s check the ingredients of american fanta and UK fanta as per the Fanta UK and USA websites.

Fanta UK ingredients

Carbonated Water, Sugar, Orange Juice from Concentrate (3.7%), Citrus Fruit from Concentrate (1.3%), Acids (Citric Acid, Malic Acid), Vegetable Extracts (Carrot, Pumpkin), Sweeteners (Acesulfame K, Sucralose), Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Acidity Regulator (Sodium Citrates), Stabiliser (Guar Gum), Natural Orange Flavourings with other Natural Flavourings, Antioxidant (Ascorbic Acid)

Fanta USA Ingredients

Carbonated Water, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Less Than 2% of: Citric Acid, Natural Flavors, Sodium Benzoate (To protect taste), Modified Food Starch, Glycerol Ester of Rosin, Yellow 6, Red 40.

American Fanta uses a combination of extracts and chemical additives to give it that signature Orange flavor and does not contain actual orange juice. The United Kingdom prides itself on using natural ingredients and does not use artificial colors or flavorings such as Tartrazine, which has been found to cause hyperactivity in children, and which were banned, about ten years ago, in Britain, and now most parts of Europe. Fanta in the United Kingdom is only made with 100% natural ingredients.

Same time, under EU Laws Fanta in the United Kingdom actually requires a certain percentage of real orange juice from orange concentrate to derive its “orange flavor” while the US version does not contain any real fruit juice. The UK version of Fanta consists of 3.7% orange juice from concentrate.

The other main difference between Fanta in the United Kingdom and the United States is the calorie difference. People who drink Fanta in the US, they might be surprised to find a 2 liter bottle has an astonishing 580 more calories than the same bottle in the UK.

Fanta Orange 2 Liter

US – 960 calories

UK – 380 calories

Difference: 580 calories

152.6% more calories in the US

The other noticeable difference between Fanta in the USA and UK is the sugar content. In the United States Fanta is made with high fructose corn syrup and Fanta in the UK contains sugar. Also in the UK, the sugar content was reduced in 2017 to 4.6% per 100ml in the standard version (non-sugar free) to ensure that the product was below the 5g that will incur the soft drinks SugarTax. Fanta in the USA contains 8.6g in 100ml bottles, almost two times as much as its British equivalent.

The difference of the color between UK and US Fanta is mainly due to the colorings used. Fanta USA uses artificial colorings and Fanta in the United Kingdom uses natural  vegetable extracts from carrot and pumpkin for colorings that gives the bright yellow color. The other noticeable ingredient in the UK Fanta is the Ascorbic Acid which acts as an antioxidant. Some experts suggest the water also plays a role in flavor change as UK and US plants use different water sources.

Inside the United Kingdom if you are looking to buy Fanta as a wholesaler or retailer, in bottles or cans  “Teeparam traders” carries a wide range of Fanta Flavors and offers our customers to buy Fanta at the lowest prices  through our B2B website or directly from their stores . With excellent customer service, Teeparam Traders always makes it the number one choice in the UK as an one stop shop for everyone.