🚀 go-pugleaf

> Very interesting. Someone earlier claimed Dr. Pepper was made
> by Coke. Now Sunkist.

Dr.  Pepper is a product of "Dr.  Pepper Co., Dallas, TX".  I recall that
at one time Coke allegedly tried to buy it, just before they came out with
Mr. Pibb, but didn't do so.  As such, none of the postings you quoted are
probably correct.*

But, as such, Dr.  Pepper is something of a "free agent," and in many
cities it gets picked up by some bottler who also bottles another well-known
beverage.  Apparently the bottling companies have some influence over which
sodas get "bundled" together in vending machines (I'm not at all sure that
there's any strict requirement, though, that a given machine can contain
only ONE company's beverage, unless it's related to who gets their name on
the outside of the machine.) In Nashville, for example, the machines were
owned by a very large and apparently politically significant vending
machine company, who would mix-and-match all kinds of unusual beverage-
manufacturer combinations.  In any case, the fact that

> Where I work, Dr.  Pepper and Sunkist are both in the Pepsi machine.

might reflect the fact that the same bottler bottles both Dr. Pepper and
Sunkist; check the fine print on the side of the bottle.

As for the concluding statement,

> Does anyone *really* know what is made by whom?  If not, please quit
> posting untruths.  Or is there some agreement between Coke and Pepsi that I
> don't know about???

The first question is a big question, and as such, asking people to "quit
posting untruths" isn't really fair.  The only people who really know the
exact details of what's happening inside the beverage industry are those
who are involved in it, and they aren't likely to tell you.  Thus, careful,
objective observation, and some use of the scientific method, often are best.
These are often wrong; but then, the reason I (personally) find the beverage
industry so interesting is because it is always full of these intriguing
puzzles, and when you finally get some revelation as to the answer to the
puzzle, often it is something no one outside ever even thought of.  And,
without meaning to be unkind, your last sentence is sort of an untruth
too... but this is just an example of how complex it all is.


*I have always wondered whether this rumored story might be a driving force
behind the strange marketing of Mr. Pibb.  Since Dr. Pepper might be possibly
protected by trade secrets, etc., maybe if Mr. Pibb eroded Dr. Pepper's
market enough, it would be worth their while to pursue Coke with legal
action; but if Mr. Pibb is carefully marketed only in cities that don't
have Dr. Pepper bottlers, or some such thing, it could fill in the niches,
thus helping increase Coke's income without directly competing with
Dr. Pepper.  HOWEVER, this is entirely speculation on my part, and may be
entirely wrong.  (So don't go making any big stock decisions based
on it :-).)

DISCLAIMER: Everything above is my opinion, and very little of it comes from
any reliable source other than the sides of tin cans and life in many cities.
-- 
Shyy-Anzr:  J. Eric Roskos
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