Aluminium can crunch hits Diet Coke India

Diet Coke is running short in Indian cities because delayed aluminium can shipments have choked the brand’s only packaging format in the country. (reuters.com) Reuters reported the shortage on April 22, with stock-outs showing up in stores as shipments from the Gulf slowed after disruptions in and around the Strait of Hormuz. The report said India sells Diet Coke only in aluminium cans, unlike Coke and Thums Up, which also come in plastic and glass. (reuters.com) Economic Times said the squeeze has spread across major cities and is also hitting beer and other canned drinks just as India’s summer demand peaks. The paper reported that companies are paying more to import cans and retailers are seeing acute stock-outs. (economictimes.indiatimes.com) The packaging detail matters because a drink can be fully made but still unsellable if the container does not arrive on time. A can shortage can slow bottling lines, delay invoices, and leave shelves empty even when syrup, water and demand are in place. (cnbctv18.com) India’s vulnerability is sharper for brands tied to one format. Reuters said most soft drinks in India can shift into PET plastic bottles or returnable glass, but Diet Coke cannot make that switch quickly because it is sold only in cans. (reuters.com) The wider metal story started before shoppers noticed missing silver cans. Reuters said the Gulf accounts for about 9% of global aluminium production, and supply has been trapped since late February by disruption around the Hormuz route. (reuters.com) India’s beverage industry was already warning about packaging stress. Reuters reported on April 9 that a European drinks lobby with members including Pernod Ricard, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Heineken and Carlsberg asked India to waive a 10% import duty on glass bottles and aluminium cans because shortages were looming. (reuters.com) The shortage is landing as Coca-Cola’s lower-sugar drinks have become a bigger part of its India business. Hindustan Times, citing company reporting, said low-sugar beverages accounted for nearly 30% of Coca-Cola India volumes in 2025, up from 5% in 2020, and Diet Coke sales doubled last year. (hindustantimes.com) That leaves Coca-Cola India with a supply-chain problem more than a demand problem: consumers still want the drink, but the can has become the bottleneck. Until can flows normalize or packaging changes, Diet Coke’s India shortage is likely to remain a metal story as much as a soda story. (reuters.com)