McCol

McCol (Korean: 맥콜, from 麥 + cola) is a South Korean soft drink with a barley flavor. It is produced by Ilhwa, a subsidiary of the Tongil Group. It is known for its longevity and high vitamin C content. It comes in cans of 160, 190, 250, and 355mL, and bottles of 0.5 and 1.5L.^[1]

Recipe

McCol, or at least its initial formulation, uses malt to create it flavor. The malt is baked and made into an extract, after which it is filtered and carbonated. The dextrin, maltose, and glucose of the malt, as well as added sugar contributes to the drink's sweet taste.^[2]

History

In the late 1970s, South Korea's booming economy led to a surplus of barley as popular diet shifted. Aiming to preserve the price of barley for farmers, the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation (농어촌개발공사, now 농수산식품유통공사) sought to develop new ways to consume barley, leading it to develop McCol in 1979. After pitching the idea to multiple producers, only Ilhwa agreed to produce the drink. McCol first entered the market on July 21, 1982 with an initial batch of 50000 cans and facing stiff competition from Coca-Cola and Chilsung Cider.^[3] In response, McCol underwent intensive marketing campaign,^[4] pitching itself since 1984 as a healthy drink.^[3] From 1987 January to October, Ilhwa spent 40,000,000,000 South Korean won on marketing alone, nearly triple that of Coca-Cola at the time. Aiming for the youth market, 80% of that budget was spent on TV adverts, with the company recruiting celebrities like Cho Yong-pil. McCol rose from a market share of 5.6% to 14–15% from 1986 to 1987,^[4] and earned around ₩9 billion annually.^[5] McCol soon released containers of 200mL, 340mL, and 640mL.^[3] In the 1990s, the drink was discontinued due to being out-competed by other brands. However, after a positive consumer taste survey, it was rebooted in early 2000s.^[6][5]

McCol Zero, a low-sugar and calorie variant, was launched in February 2023,^[7] following the zero-sugar industry trend. By September 2024, over 15 million cans were sold,^[8] and by 2025, 6.4 billion cans had been sold.^[7] In recent times Ilhwa is seeking to expand McCol internationally, exporting the drink to the US, Japan, Russia, Australia, and others. Additionally, Ilhwa signed contracts in South Africa in 2023 and Mongol in 2024.^[9]

Some Christians boycott the drink as they view the Unification Church, who is affiliated with the Tongil Group, as heretical.^[10]