In the super-sized ice bucket of soft drinks, there appears to be room for a half-pint.
Eight-ounce cans of Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Sprite and Vanilla Coke are showing up for a limited time in Chicago-area stores. For now, it’s just a smidge of shelf space in the midst of towering 2-liter bottles and single-serving products that crest at 20 ounces. But sales of these “cute little cans” (as described by several soft-drinkers on the Q staff) are catching the attention of retailers.
“The cans have been popular since we introduced them in Chicago-area and Wisconsin stores in late September,” said Doug Kline, a spokesman for Target stores.
But don’t expect glowing reports from the food police at the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), the Washington, D.C., consumer advocate group that has rated fat and calorie content in offerings from pizza to popcorn. Nutritionists there will point out that an 8-ounce serving of cola still has about 7 teaspoons of sugar and 100 calories.
Nonetheless, there is something to be said for cutting down on some of the “empty,” or nutrient-lacking, calories while wetting your whistle.
“Sometimes you just need a little something to quench your thirst,” said Christine Palumbo, a Naperville-based nutritionist who applauds the downsizing. Cynical observers might assume the new “cute little cans” are a ploy to make more profit on less product. Yes and no. The per-ounce price of 4.1 cents is similar to pricing for six-packs of 12-ounce cans but more than the per-ounce price of 2-liter bottles.
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There might good reason to root for the half-pints, but not by at least one Chicagoan’s estimation. He was working his Pepsi route on the North Side.
“I hope we never carry those things,” said the delivery man as he moved cases of product. “They would be a hassle.”