16-603: 7 Up (stylized as 7up outside the United States) or Seven Up is an American brand of lemon-lime–flavored non- caffeinated soft drink . The brand and formula are owned by Keurig Dr Pepper , although the beverage is internationally distributed by PepsiCo except the UK where it is distributed by Britvic , PepsiCo's designated UK distributor. 7 Up was created by Charles Leiper Grigg , who launched his St. Louis –based company The Howdy Corporation in 1920. Grigg came up with
32-501: A licensing partnership with Vita Food Products to produce a line of barbecue sauces and marinades flavored with Dr Pepper , 7 Up, and A&W Root Beer . Metal pedestrian crossing markers saying "Drink 7up Safety First" were installed in many U.S. cities in the 1930s. "Fresh-Up Freddie" was the rooster mascot for 7 Up in the 1950s. He gave viewers lessons about how to plan successful parties and picnics by having plenty of 7 Up on hand. The commercials were produced by Disney , giving
48-474: A small amount of merchandising, was voiced by Paul Frees . In the late 1960s and 1980s, Geoffrey Holder appeared in television ads as part of 7 Up's "Uncola" ad campaign, designed to highlight differences between 7 Up and other soft drinks on the market with cola flavoring. In the ads, Geoffrey holds a pair of cola nuts in one hand and a lemon & lime (used to flavor 7 Up) in the other hand and describes them as "Uncola nuts". In 1987, 7 Up introduced Spot,
64-413: Is commonly consumed cold – refrigerated or with ice. It is also used as a mixer for highball alcoholic lemon-lime soda cocktails , including the 7 and 7 ( Seagram's 7 Crown and 7 Up) and CC and Seven ( Canadian Club whisky and 7 Up). 7 Up is also used in both alcoholic and non-alcoholic punches. 7 Up has been reformulated several times since its launch in 1929. In 2006, the version of
80-480: The double entendre on the back that featured the Up Yours part; 7 Up would sell the shirt through specialty retailer Spencer Gifts for many years. In 1974, 7 Up became The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon 's first corporate sponsor; this was at a time when its sponsorship was generally limited to trade unions and civic organizations. Lemon-lime drink Too Many Requests If you report this error to
96-492: The United Kingdom, where HFCS is not generally used in foods, including 7 Up. In 2011, 7 Up began test marketing a formula, called 7 Up Retro, using sugar rather than HFCS. Container labels sport the caption "Made With Real Sugar". Diet 7 Up was later reformulated and advertised as being sweetened with sucralose and Acesulfame Potassium replacing Aspartame . The recipe later reverted to using Aspartame. The beverage
112-459: The character the specific Disney look of the time. Freddie has been described as a hybrid of the rooster Panchito Pistoles from The Three Caballeros and the zany Aracuan Bird from the same film. He often was dressed in human clothes. Freddie also appeared in the 1957 Zorro TV series' commercial intermissions. In these commercials, Freddie fought with Pete the Cat . Freddie, who was featured in
128-525: The formula for a lemon-lime soft drink in 1929. The product, originally named "Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda", was launched two weeks before the Wall Street Crash of 1929 . It contained lithium citrate , a mood-stabilizing drug, until 1948. It was one of a number of patent medicine products popular in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. Its name was later changed to "7 Up Lithiated Lemon Soda", becoming just "7 Up" by 1936. The origin of
144-429: The name is unclear. Britvic claims that the name comes from the seven main ingredients in the drink, while others have claimed that the number was a reference to the lithium contained in the original recipe, which has an atomic mass of 7. Britvic also claims that the name alluded to 7 Up being packaged in seven-ounce bottles when Coca-Cola and most other soft drinks were bottled in six-ounce bottles. The 7 Up company
160-473: The original formula in 2013. It was rebranded as Cherry 7 Up Zero Sugar in late 2020. In Norway, it contained a combination of artificial sugars, and for eight years was the only variety on the Norwegian market. The lack of the usual light or zero-label is confusing to Norwegian consumers, who often buy it not knowing they are buying a product with artificial sugars. In 2007, Cadbury Schweppes entered into
176-423: The product sold in the U.S. was reformulated so it could be marketed as being "100% natural ". This was achieved by eliminating the chelating agent calcium disodium EDTA , and replacing sodium citrate with potassium citrate to reduce the beverage's sodium content. This reformulation contains no fruit juice and, in the U.S., is sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). The manufacturing process used in
SECTION 10
#1732779931202192-525: The production of HFCS has led some public health and advocacy groups to challenge the ad campaign 's "natural" claims. In 2007, after the Center for Science in the Public Interest threatened to sue 7 Up, it was announced that 7 Up would stop being marketed as "100% natural". Instead, it is now promoted as having "100% Natural Flavors". The controversy does not extend to other countries, such as
208-425: The red-orange dot in the 7 Up logo anthropomorphized into a mascot. The character was used heavily in advertising and licensed items across the U.S., including the 1993 platform video game Cool Spot . The cartoon character Fido Dido was used as a mascot in international areas from the late 1980s through the early 1990s, and was reintroduced in international markets in the early 2000s. Since PepsiCo did not own
224-511: The rights to 7 Up in the US, certain ads featuring Fido Dido were instead reworked to advertise the company's Slice brand of lemon-lime soda. In the early 2000s, Orlando Jones served as the spokesperson for 7 Up in the United States in a series of commercials. Notably, one commercial had him wear a t-shirt that had 7 Up's then-slogan Make 7 Up Yours divided between the front and back with
240-507: Was privately owned by its founding families until it was sold in 1978 to Philip Morris , which sold it in 1986 in two parts: the international division to PepsiCo and the US business to a group led by the investment firm Hicks & Haas . In the US, 7 Up merged with Dr Pepper in 1988; Cadbury Schweppes bought the combined company in 1995. The Dr Pepper Snapple Group was spun off from Cadbury Schweppes in 2008; it merged with Keurig Green Mountain in 2018 to form Keurig Dr Pepper . 7 Up
256-495: Was rebranded as 7 Up Zero Sugar in late 2020. It was renamed and reformulated as Cherry 7 Up Antioxidant in January 2009; however, the soda's antioxidant line was pulled from shelves in 2012 amid a controversy about the rumored detrimental health effects of consuming antioxidant drinks, and the original formula returned. As with the regular variety, it was reformulated as Diet Cherry 7 Up Antioxidant in 2009 before reverting to
#201798