7UP Launches Lime-Forward Recipe Change in the Brand’s First Flavor Innovation in Over 15 Years

The brand is leaning into its marketing history of going against convention by launching a new lime-forward recipe and refreshed branding

NEED TO KNOW

• 7UP is shifting from lemon-lime to a lime-lemon flavor profile with its first recipe change in over 15 years
• The brand aims to appeal to younger consumers with bold citrus flavors and a refreshed visual identity
• According to the company, the updated recipe allows for differentiation in the lemon-lime drink category

7UP is leaning into lime.

The beverage brand announced on Aug. 10 that it is launching its first flavor change in over 15 years, with “a lime-led reformulation” rolling out to retailers nationwide in mid-August, per a press release shared with PEOPLE.

With the recipe change, the company is shifting away from “lemon-lime” and embracing “lime-lemon,” according to a fact sheet shared with PEOPLE.

The new 7UP Lime Lemon “brings the consumer-preferred lime-forward profile to 7UP Regular, 7UP Zero Sugar, Cherry 7UP and Cherry 7UP Zero Sugar,” the company said.

Per the release, the new drinks have “a distinctive lime-forward taste,” which the brand calls “the most significant evolution of the 7UP brand in more than 15 years.”

7UP said that the change is meant to create “distinctiveness” for the brand and draw in younger audiences. The brand cited data from Keurig Dr. Pepper’s State of Beverages 2026 Trend Report, which found that younger audiences gravitate toward citrus flavors and “bold” flavor experiences.

“This is a bold reinvention of one of America’s most iconic soda brands for a new generation of consumers – starting with the flavor itself,” a spokesperson for the brand said in the release, highlighting that the new recipe is “more refreshing.”

They added, “7UP has an incredible legacy, but by giving lime the spotlight, we’re rewriting the rules of the lemon lime category. We are transforming a beloved heritage brand into a modern disruptor.”

The release emphasized the drink’s status as “the Original Uncola,” a reference to a slogan coined for the drink in 1967 to put it in contrast with cola drinks that were dominant in the market at the time, per Duke University’s Hartman Center.

“7UP built its reputation by challenging conventions and offering consumers something different,” the company said in its release. “The brand is returning to those roots with a renewed focus on differentiation.”

According to the company, the lime-forward recipe is the first of its kind in the lemon-lime drink category. It opposes how “the entire world’s gone same-y,” the fact sheet said.

The brand noted that the sweeteners used in the drink have not changed.

Along with the recipe changes, the company is updating its branding.

The “refreshed visual identity” includes a vertical logo, the Lime Lemon designation, bold colors and a distinctive design, per the release.

The design is simpler than the prior one, with the words “7UP” and “Lime Lemon” standing out against the color of the can.

The company said the new design is a “modern take on iconic elements from 7UP’s past.”

Per the release, the brand update will be accompanied by a “Flip the Sip” campaign, which will include in-store experiences.