Ilhwa, which made Korea’s first barley soda drink called McCol, is aggressively targeting the summer beverage market by introducing its new grain soda.

Food and beverage health company Ilhwa announced on the 19^th that it will release its new soda product called “MECOL,” which contains black rice, the first of its kind.

In the newly-released MECOL, vitamin C is added to the base drink made of brown rice (10% brown rice extract). Also, MECOL is made with Ilhwa’s special technology, which was corroborated through countless efforts made by the company through dealing with McCol, natural cider and premium carbonated water.

In particular, since brown rice contains four times the amount of the antioxidant anthocyanin than soy beans, and also includes five times the amount of vitamin B, iron and zinc than white rice, the drink is expected to become a popular health drink. The drink comes in a 250ml can, and will be available all across the country at discount stores and convenience stores.

Ilhwa’s planning director Na Sang-Hoon stated, “As the number of consumers looking for the perfect refreshing drink during the hot summer weather continues to rise, we decided to offer carbonated drinks which contain grains and nutrients beneficial to their health,” and continued by saying, “We will continue to do our best to provide healthy drinks that will provide an energy boost to all those worn out from the heat.”

Meanwhile, McCol, which was released in 1982 and celebrated its 36^th anniversary, is a carbonated wellness drink made from domestically-produced organic barley. The beverage is starting to gain global traction as a health drink, because it does not include harmful substances such as phosphoric acid, caramel color pigment, caffeine and synthetic flavoring chemicals; but instead contains vitamins B1, B2 and C, which other carbonated beverages often do not contain..... [See the original story]