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Urge

Type	Citrus soda
Manufacturer	The Coca-Cola Company
Distributor	Coca-Cola Norway
Country of origin	Norway
Introduced	April 1996; 28 years ago (1996-04)
Color	Carotene E160a
Variants	Surge, Urge Uten Sukker (Diet)
Related products	Vault
Website	Urge

Urge is a citrus-flavored soft drink produced by Coca-Cola Norway that was first introduced in the country in 1996, and later on was released in Denmark and Sweden. It is the predecessor of the American soft drink Surge, which was introduced in the US in 1997. Urge was discontinued in Denmark and Sweden in 2001. In Norway, Urge sales increased greatly over the years reaching a market share near 10% despite receiving no marketing since its initial launch.

Launch

The product was first released on 22 April 1996 as a test product. Originally bottled by Ringnes along with other Coca-Cola products, it was a competitor to Ringnes' orange soda, Solo. The Norwegian market was chosen as a test market due to high consumption of carbonated beverages – then fifth worldwide – and its small population, making it easy to get feedback quickly.

The label's color was described as "grungy green and orange", which were noted as being fashionable at the time.

The product sold well, particularly among the 12–19 age group, leading to its worldwide release. By the end of January 1997, the product had reached 2.2% market share in Norway.

Sizes

Urge was available in Norway in 0.5 L and 1.5 L bottles, and later also in 0.33 L cans, but in Q1 of 1999 the 1.5 L bottles were taken off the market due to unsatisfactory sales. The cans also vanished from the market a few years later, leaving only the 0.5 L bottles.

A massive campaign by the consumers on Facebook led to the relaunch of the 1.5 L bottle size on 1 September 2008. It has a sugar content of 68 grams per 0.5 L bottle.

In February 2017, due to fan demand, the 0.33 L cans were reintroduced in a multipack of four.

Varieties

Urge Intense

Urge Intense was an energy drink variant of Urge. It was launched in 2009 in association with the Facebook group that pressured Coca-Cola to relaunch the 1.5L bottles. Much like with many other energy drinks like Burn and Monster Energy, Urge Intense Triple Rush came in 0.5L cans and has a high caffeine content of 32 mg per 100 mL.

The Urge Intense range was discontinued in 2016.

Urge Uten Sukker

In September 2017, a zero-sugar version was launched known as Urge Uten Sukker ('Urge Without Sugar'), which, like its regular counterpart, was made especially for Norway. This sugar-free variant came in orange-tinted bottles, before switching to the clear ones regular Urge uses.

Nutritional information

References

1. Gleason, Mark (23 December 1996). "Coca-Cola faces uphill scramble with Surge intro". Advertising Age. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
2. Collins, Glenn (16 December 1996). "Coca-Cola, in Direct Attack on Pepsi, to Introduce Challenger to Mountain Dew". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
3. Millman, Nancy (17 December 1996). "Coke Surges into Pepsi's Mountainous Dew Territory". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
4. ^ "Urge product page on coca-cola.no" (in Norwegian). The Coca-Cola Company. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2009.
5. Foght, Thomas (16 September 2014). "Coca-Cola giver comeback til kult-sodavand fra 90'erne". Metroexpress (in Danish). Retrieved 3 December 2014.
6. Urge focus group held by Coca-Cola Company 30 April 2007
7. ^ "Lysegrønsj bestselger". Finnmark Dagblad (in Norwegian). No. 170. Hammerfest. 26 July 1996. p. 11. Retrieved 9 August 2024 – via National Library of Norway.
8. "Håper fortsatt på jobb i Ringnes". Øvre Smaalenene (in Norwegian). 26 June 1996. p. 9. Retrieved 9 August 2024 – via National Library of Norway.
9. "Ringnes svarer med ny drikk". Arbeiderbladet (in Norwegian). Oslo. 20 June 1996. p. 7. Retrieved 9 August 2024 – via National Library of Norway.
10. ^ "Testet ny drikk i Norge". Arbeiderbladet (in Norwegian). 28 January 1997. p. 14. Retrieved 9 August 2024 – via National Library of Norway.
11. ^ "Magnus (17) overbeviste Coca-Cola". 2 February 2006. Retrieved 5 January 2009. (Norwegian)
12. Urge 0.5 L bottle label
13. "Nyheter fra Coca-Cola, Urge og Monster | Coca-Cola European Partners Norge".
14. "Har de sluttet å produsere Urge Intense? - Mat og drikke". Diskusjon.no. Archived from the original on 1 August 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
15. "URGE INTENSE INFERNO I BUTIKK!". Retrieved 25 May 2012. (Norwegian)
16. "URGE INTENSE Wild Mango!". Retrieved 17 July 2014. (Norwegian)
17. "Coca-Cola fortsetter sin sukkerfrie reise - Lanserer kun nyheter uten sukker | Coca-Cola European Partners Norge".
18. "Nå kommer sukkerfri Coca-Cola med en helt ny smak".
19. "Coca-Cola fortsetter å lansere sukkerfrie varianter | Coca-Cola European Partners Norge".

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