Pakola

Pakola was the creation of seven brothers from the Teli family of Dhoraji in India, who migrated to Pakistan in 1947. The idea of Pakola came from its founder Haji Ali Mohammad, who dreamed of developing a drink that portrayed the true reflection and taste of Pakistan.{{Cite web|url=http://beta.dawn.com/news/827212/excerpt-indigenous-icons|title=EXCERPT: Indigenous icons|date=14 February 2010|website=DAWN.COM}}

The drink debuted at the Pakistan Air Force base on 14 August 1950, the anniversay of Pakistan's Independence,{{cite news |title=Pakola: engaging with Pakistan's mighty hearts |url=https://aurora.dawn.com/news/1143036/pakola-engaging-with-pakistans-mighty-hearts |newspaper=Dawn (newspaper) |author=Saniya Naqvi|date=13 June 2018|access-date=20 September 2021}} during an event attended by the first Prime Minister, Liaquat Ali Khan.

In the early 1960s, people began mixing Pakola with chilled milk and serving it in jugs during the communal 'iftars' in the month of Ramadan. This helped increase its consumption and popularity.

File:Pakola.jpg

Later, Pakistan Beverages (PB) was founded at Karachi's S.I.T.E. industrial area, which became the production hub for Pakola. In 1979, Pakistan Beverages was announced as a new production facility for Pepsi. This led to the founding of Mehran Bottlers, managed by Haji Ali Mohammad's nephews, Zafir Habib and Arif Habib. They continued to produce the drink along with other products such as Apple Sidra and Bubble Up.

In 2004, Mehran Bottlers and Pakistan Beverages started manufacturing cans in Pakistan. That same year, Zeeshan Z. Habib took charge as the chief executive officer of Mehran Bottlers.

Several of the variants that have been introduced by Pakola:

• Pakola Ice Cream Soda (1950)
• Pakola Orange (1985)
• Pakola Raspberry (1985)
• Pakola Lychee (1991)
• Pakola Fresh Lime (2006)
• Pakola Water (2015)
• Pakola Pomegranate (2016)
• Pakola Vimto
• Apple Sidra
• Forest (Club Soda)

==Ingredients==

Pakola is made with carbonated water, sugar, citric acid, cream soda artificial flavor, Color: FD&C Bleu No 1 (E 133), FD&C Yellow No.5 (E 102), and sodium benzoate. A typical can of Pakola (8.5 fl ounces/250 ml) has 34 g of sugar, 15 mg of sodium, 0 g of cholesterol, 0 g fat, 0 g of protein, and 130 calories.

Pakola is currently produced by Mehran Bottlers.{{cite news|author=Saad Hasan|date=9 January 2014|title=The story which left us thirsting for more...|newspaper=The Express Tribune (newspaper)|url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/653387/the-story-which-left-us-thirsting-for-more|access-date=20 September 2021}}

Pakola is now available in America, Africa, Australia, Canada, Middle East, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. It is the only carbonated beverage manufactured in Pakistan that is exported globally.

Due to the introduction of the capacity tax in 2013, Pakola discontinued the production and distribution of all glass-bottled products. The tax was levied on the overall production and distribution of the machinery instead of output, which was detrimental for companies with lower productions or smaller markets. After the collapse of this system, Mehran Bottlers quickly set up their PET lines to grasp the market once again.{{cite news|url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/584777/bleeding-green-pakola-fizzles-out-as-capacity-tax-reintroduced |author=Saad Hasan|title=Bleeding green: Pakola fizzles out as capacity tax reintroduced |date=31 July 2013|newspaper=The Express Tribune (newspaper)|access-date=22 September 2021}}

{{Reflist}}

• [https://www.pakola.com.pk/ Pakola website]

{{Cream soda brands}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pakola}}

Category:Drink companies of Pakistan

Category:Pakistani drinks

Category:Products introduced in 1950

Category:Cream sodas

Category:Pakistani brands