Dixi Cola
Little is known about the origins of Dixi Cola. The earliest available reference online is a 1940 lawsuit filed by The Coca-Cola Company against Dixi Cola and several other cola manufacturers. Coca-Cola claimed it held the exclusive right to use the word “cola” in a brand name. The company initially won the case, but the following year, an appeals court ruled that “cola” had become sufficiently generic for others to use it as well.
For most of its existence, Dixi Cola was headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, though it was previously based in Ruxton, Maryland.
The original Dixi Cola seems to have disappeared in 1989.
U.S. Bottlers
Dixi Cola was bottled in the United States by various companies over the years, catering different regions (not an exhaustive list).
- Beverage Capital Corporation, Baltimore, Maryland
- Custom Canners of Baltimore Inc., Maryland
- The Hastings Bottling Works, Hastings, Pennsylvania
- Seven Up Bottling Company, San Francisco, California
- Dossin’s, Detroit, Michigan
- Spindle City Bottling Company, Gastonia, North Carolina
- Latham’s Beverages, Rock Hill, South Carolina
International Production
Dixi Cola have been produced under license in several countries. According to some sources, 22 different countries outside the U.S. Here are some:
- Cyprus: Produced since 1958 under the name “Bixi Cola,” using the same logo as the American Dixi Cola. Exported to Turkey, where it became the first mass-produced canned soft drink. Distribution in Turkey ended in 1967–1968 following market pressure from Coca-Cola and Pepsi. Bixi Cola seems to have gone out of business around the same time as the Dixi Cola. However, Bixi Cola made a comeback to Cyprus in 2025.
- Australia: Produced under license by Tarax since before 1965. Tarax had also been making a cola under its own brand, probably until they started producing Dixi Cola.
- Trinidad and Tobago: Produced since 1968 by SM Jaleel, the largest soft drink manufacturer in the Caribbean region.
- India: Bottled by Bangalore Soft Drinks Private Limited.
- United Arab Emirates: Produced by Canning and Beverages Filling Industries.
Primary sources: Dixi-Cola Laboratories v. Coca-Cola Co. (1941), canmuseum.com.
