50/50 (soft drink) explained
50/50 (also known as Canfield's 50/50 and Graf's 50/50) was a grapefruit- and lime-flavored soft drink produced in the United States.[1] [2] 50/50 was primarily sold in the Midwest, including southern Wisconsin and the Chicagoland area.[3] It was one of the Canfield company's more popular soft drink flavors.[4]
In the 1870s, John Graf of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, brewed a number of soft drinks, including Grandpa Graf's root beer and 50/50. Soft drinks became the Graf family business. In 1968, his descendant Lawrie O. Graf sold the business to P & V Atlas, who sold it to Canada Dry, who sold it to the A.J. Canfield Company of Chicago, Illinois.[2] The A.J. Canfield company produced and distributed the drink for nearly three decades. In 1995, Select Beverages, a drink company based in Darien, Illinois, acquired A.J. Canfield, taking over the production of 50/50.[5] Select Beverages was itself acquired by Cadbury Schweppes and The Carlyle Group in 1998.[6] In 2008, Cadbury Schweppes split into Cadbury and the Dr Pepper Snapple Group, the latter of which continued to produce 50/50.[7] [8] Dr Pepper Snapple Group was itself acquired by Keurig Green Mountain in 2018, becoming Keurig Dr Pepper.[9]
50/50 became increasingly difficult to find in the years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic. By early 2024, consumers could no longer find 50/50 on grocery store shelves, leading fans of the drink to believe that it had been quietly discontinued. 50/50 is no longer included on the list of brands owned by Keurig Dr Pepper as of May 2024.[1]
External links
Notes and References
- Web site: Maas . Tyler . A belated farewell to 50/50, a Milwaukee-born citrus soda that was too good for this world . Milwaukee Record . https://web.archive.org/web/20241207213415/https://milwaukeerecord.com/food-drink/a-belated-farewell-to-50-50-a-milwaukee-born-citrus-soda-that-was-too-good-for-this-world/ . December 7, 2024 . May 20, 2024 . live.
- Web site: Maas . Tyler . Part grapefruit, part lime, all outstanding: A 50/50 appreciation post . Milwaukee Record . https://web.archive.org/web/20201231180041/https://milwaukeerecord.com/food-drink/part-grapefruit-part-lime-all-outstanding-a-50-50-appreciation-post/ . December 31, 2020 . December 31, 2020 . live.
- News: Display Ad 24 - Canfield's Beverages . Chicago Defender Daily Edition . October 9, 1969 . 25.
- Web site: Arthur J. Canfield, 86; Helped in Expansion of Soft-Drink Company . . https://web.archive.org/web/20240803013802/https://www.chicagotribune.com/2000/08/31/arthur-j-canfield-84-helped-in-expansion-of-soft-drink-company/ . August 3, 2024 . August 31, 2000 . live.
- Ford . Dawn . Select buys Canfield, creates Midwest powerhouse . Beverage Industry . July 1995 . 86 . 7 . 14 . 0148-6187.
- Web site: Kirk. Jim. Select Beverages To Be Swallowed By Joint Venture Firm. 11 June 2012. Chicago Tribune. 24 February 1998 . https://web.archive.org/web/20250102033248/https://www.chicagotribune.com/1998/02/24/select-beverages-to-be-swallowed-by-joint-venture-firm/ . January 2, 2025 . live.
- Web site: Cadbury starts solo against bid background . https://web.archive.org/web/20080511182110/http://uk.reuters.com/article/mergersNews/idUKL0268326320080502 . dead . May 11, 2008 . Reuters . May 2, 2008.
- Web site: Cadbury PLC Demergery . Cadbury Investors . https://web.archive.org/web/20100906184206/http://www.cadburyinvestors.com/cadbury_ir/shareholder_services/demerger/ . September 6, 2010 . 2010 . dead.
- News: Keurig Dr Pepper Announces Successful Completion of the Merger between Keurig Green Mountain and Dr Pepper Snapple Group. July 9, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180709223719/https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180709005853/en/Keurig-Dr-Pepper-Announces-Successful-Completion-Merger . July 9, 2018 . live.
