How Coca-Cola Plans On Combatting Price Hikes Due To Tariffs

On February 10, President Donald Trump announced new 25% tariffs on aluminum and steel imports. This announcement followed the now delayed 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, which roused chaos, confusion, and anxiety across the globe. And though those plans now seem to be on ice, Trump's new tariffs, aimed at large imports of the metals from China, are set to take effect on March 12. In response to these incoming tariffs, Coca-Cola has drawn up its own plans to avoid potential price increases due to the inevitable rise in aluminum costs, which will no doubt impact Coca-Cola's canned beverages. 

The company plans to expand its plastic bottled beverages. News of this shift comes from a phone call made by Coca-Cola chief executive officer James Quincey and the company's investors. According to the call's transcript, Quincey said that "if one package suffers some increase in input costs, we continue to have other packaging offerings that will allow us to compete in the affordability space."  This is Coca-Cola's way of ensuring there are no significant price jumps, which could potentially slow sales.

The move away from canned Coca-Cola drinks will certainly disappoint many Coke and Diet Coke drinkers, who hold canned sodas far above the esteem of plastic bottled drinks. For Diet Coke fans, this may be especially concerning, as they tend to assign strict rankings to Diet Coke containers, with many preferring cans to plastic bottles. Though, for what it's worth, McDonald's Coke products tend to rank above prepackaged drinks, so soda sippers are safe on that front.

However, perhaps the biggest impact of this potential shift toward plastic is the company's move away from its environmental goals. The company had already downshifted in December 2024, moving away from its aim of using 50% recyclable packaging material by 2030 to a more modest 35% recycled packaging by 2035. Aluminum packaging has been a vital part of Coca-Cola's push toward sustainability in its products. Unlike plastic, which is doesn't recycle efficiently, aluminum is an infinitely recyclable material. The push toward plastic packaging is definitely a hit for the company's sustainability — and most likely for the beverage industry as a whole.