Fanta was created in Germany during World War II because of ingredient shortages.
The German Coca-Cola bottling operation developed Fanta in 1940 after wartime trade restrictions made it difficult to obtain the Coca-Cola syrup used for the company’s standard drink. The local team used available ingredients, including whey and fruit residues, to produce a substitute beverage that could be sold in Germany.
The name “Fanta” came from the German word “Fantasie,” meaning imagination. The wartime German product was not the same orange soda sold internationally today. After the war, Coca-Cola discontinued the original formula, and the modern Fanta brand was later developed and expanded, particularly as an orange-flavored soft drink.
Fanta is sometimes described simply as an orange soda, but its history began as a wartime Coca-Cola bottling solution. Its unusual origin explains why the brand has a separate identity despite belonging to the Coca-Cola system.