Diet drink Cola placed an announcement in an Atlanta newspaper in 1958 announcing a diet product, Diet Rite. In 1962, Dr Pepper released a diet(etic) version of its soft drink, although it sold slowly due to the misconception that it was meant solely for diabetic consumption. In 1963, The Coca-Cola Company joined the diet soft drink market with Tab, which proved to be a huge success. Tab was originally sweetened with cyclamates and saccharin. Tab, Diet Rite, and Fresca (a grapefruit-flavored drink introduced by Coca-Cola) were the only brand-name diet refreshments on the market until Pepsi released Patio Diet Cola in 1963
National Beverage National Beverage National Beverage Corp. is an American beverage developer, manufacturer, and distributor based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, focused on flavored soft drinks. National Beverage Corp. is ranked by "Beverage Digest" as the fifth-largest soft drink company in the United States. The company was formed in 1985 by Nick A. Caporella to fend off an unwanted acquisition by Victor Posner of Burnup & Sims Inc., an installer of cable television and telecommunications systems, through trading stock between the two companies to reduce Posner's ownership level. Caporella, now having an additional company, needed to have a business to go with it