Another global event is causing another run on what many might consider a household necessity, although in this case, some might prefer a toilet paper shortage.
For those who love Diet Coke — and there are many — it’s much more than a fizzy brown beverage. It’s a way of life, an obsession and a cultural symbol, with its fans often described as a hardcore cult and Gen Z influencers referring to the drink as a “fridge cigarette.”
There’s even a Diet Coke exhibit at the National Museum of American History, in a collection of “national treasures.”
So, the mere mention of a possible Diet Coke shortage has caused a bit of panic both online, with people posting videos of themselves hoarding the drinks during what they’ve coined the “candemic,” and in real life, with Diet Coke parties sweeping across parts of India.
“Pretty sure I am 90 per cent diet coke at this point and if a shortage happened in the U.S., I don’t know how I would cope,” someone wrote on the Diet Coke subreddit last week.
“We’re crying, bawling, crashing out even over this diet coke shortage. But at least we’re in this together,” Lifestyle Asia media company wrote on Instagram in April.
“Candemic Alert,” a Mumbai content creator posted on Instagram over the weekend. “Diet Coke has lowkey disappeared from major Indian cities and I’m not handling it well.”
But is there an actual Diet Coke shortage? If so, what caused it? And could it affect the stock of fridge cigarettes near you?
Let’s break it down.
Is there a Diet Coke shortage?
Technically, not of the beverage itself. But there is a squeeze on aluminum cans linked to the war in Iran, and this has caused a shortage of Diet Coke in some markets, like India, where the beverage is only sold in cans, according to Reuters.
CBC News has reached out to Coca-Cola directly but has not received a response. On its U.S. website, the company notes that, “an increased demand for products consumed at home and shortages of aluminum and certain ingredients have impacted our supply chain in some places.”
“We’re working closely with our customers and our suppliers to ensure product availability. We’re also maintaining plans to address any supply chain challenges that arise,” Coca-Cola writes.
Why just Diet Coke?
As the Times of India points out, while shortages of cans are affecting other drinks, Diet Coke’s can-only packaging in India makes it more vulnerable to supply chain disruptions caused by shipments stuck in the Strait of Hormuz.
There’s a growing demand for Diet Coke in India, where Reuters reports it’s a preferred alcohol mixer, often paired with rum, is also popular among health-conscious consumers there and is considered a status symbol, according to Fortune.
Canned Diet Coke can still be scooped up online there, but only in limited quantities.
“We are facing acute Diet Coke stock-outs since the weekend; if supplies do come, they are being immediately picked by consumers,” a grocery retailer in Delhi said in the Times of India in April.
India’s shortage has resulted in a flood of social media memes showing people hoarding cans. In response to the scarcity, some businesses have turned to art, running workshops and events where people can decorate cans of the beverage with rhinestones, or make prints on T-shirts.
Indian pubs and social media influencers have also spotted a chance to profit, Reuters notes, organizing parties that offer access to Diet Coke as well as music and alcohol and activities.
There’s a shortage of Diet Coke in India, where it’s sold only in cans, due to a squeeze on aluminum cans linked to the war in Iran. As cheeky memes showing people hoarding cans flood social media, some businesses in India are leaning into the trend by offering workshops and events where people can decorate cans or make prints on T-shirts.
What’s happening with aluminum cans?
The war in Iran is creating a crisis in the global aluminum market.
Missile strikes in the Middle East have damaged several of the world’s major aluminum smelters, others have decreased production due to power shortages and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is severely restrained, Reuters reports.
“Diet Coke is a really weird sort of splash zone casualty on this,” William Huggins, an assistant professor in finance and business economics at McMaster University, told CBC News.
He says it boils down to infrastructure bubbling up into the public consciousness during times of strife. “It’s kind of like most people don’t know where the hydro dam is until something goes wrong at the hydro dam.”
You might be hearing about the Strait of Hormuz in the news. CBC Kids News contributor Manny Brennan breaks down the tense geopolitical standoff and how it affects people around the world.
Gulf Cooperation Council countries produce about eight per cent of the global aluminum output, according to S&P Global.
And the majority of Middle Eastern smelters are concentrated along the Strait of Hormuz, consultant group Wood Mackenzie noted in an April news release. These disruptions are putting the global supply chain at risk.
“With so much production and export infrastructure tied to a single trade route, even short-term disruptions can have outsized and immediate global consequences,” said Uday Patel, principal analyst at Wood Mackenzie.
All told, the global market is looking at a supply deficit of up to 3.5 million metric tons of aluminum this year, according to Wood Mackenzie.
How does this affect Diet Coke?
Coca-Cola operates through local bottlers and distributors to sell its soda concentrates, but it is still directly exposed to higher packaging costs of plastic as well as aluminum for some finished products.
Refining and smelting aluminum is energy intensive, and the Persian Gulf has a surplus of natural gas, so it makes sense to do it there and create inexpensive aluminum for local markets, Huggins told CBC News.
“And that’s where the cascade into the price and shortages of Diet Coke cans in India comes from, because India is in that local catchment region for that aluminum refining and smelting activity,” he said.
“Coca-Cola, buying from them, obviously, is running into physical shortage problems.”
Two Coca-Cola distributors in India told Reuters in April that the company notified them it was rationing supplies or not fulfilling some orders due to a can shortage caused by the war.
“We are working hard with our bottling partners to deal with the implications of the situation … in the Middle East,” CFO John Murphy said in a Reuters interview at the end of April.
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What about countries other than India?
The only concrete reports of Diet Coke can shortages so far are in India. But in terms of aluminum shortages in general, there are reports that other countries relying on aluminum from the Persian Gulf could be affected.
The Atlantic reports that there could be ripple effects in the U.S. thanks to one of the biggest Diet Coke fans out there: U.S. President Donald Trump, who famously installed a button on his desk to have Diet Coke delivered right to the Oval Office. He also raised tariffs on aluminum imports last year.
“As a result, more aluminum from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain started flowing into the U.S. Now the U.S. is experiencing higher aluminum prices than anywhere else, and it’s more susceptible to incoming price shocks from the Gulf,” The Atlantic noted.
Could this mean less Diet Coke in Canada?
Probably not! The good news is that Canada is very unlikely to be affected, Huggins said, because we have reliable aluminum supplies and refining right here.
Canada is the world’s fourth-largest primary aluminum producer, according to Natural Resources Canada, with 10 primary aluminum smelters, mostly in Quebec. Canada also has an alumina refinery in operation in Jonquière, Que.
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Alumina, a chemical compound used in the smelting process, is big and heavy, and expensive to move around, Huggins said. “It’s the sort of thing you source locally.”
Global Trade Magazine reports that Coca-Cola sources some of its aluminum from Canada, but also that the company started shifting its packaging in North America more toward plastic bottles in 2025, in response to aluminum tariffs.
And just in February, Coca-Cola Canada Bottling Ltd. announced it was investing $141 million to renovate and expand its flagship manufacturing, distribution and sales centre in Brampton, Ont.
Among its products? Diet Coke.
