COCA-COLA has issued an update to everyone who drinks the product and may have been expecting a recipe change.

The Coca-Cola company provided a statement about the future of its recipe following a review into the safety of one of its ingredients.

Aspartame, an artificial sweetener, is used in many soft drinks, including Coke Zero and Diet Coke.

In July, the synthetic sweetener was declared a “possible” carcinogen by the World Health Organisation (WHO) based on “limited evidence for cancer in humans”.

However, the WHO also concluded that the available data did not warrant a change of the acceptable daily intake of aspartame.

South Wales Argus: For most of its history, The Coca‑Cola Company’s secret formula was locked away in a vault

In response to the news, Coca-Cola said it would continue to provide “safe, high-quality beverages” and were “not planning to change” any recipes containing Aspartame.

The statement from the Coca-Cola company said: “For more than 137 years, The Coca‑Cola Company has provided safe, high-quality beverages that offer consumers a broad range of choices to refresh them and satisfy their thirst. 

“After the recent comprehensive and rigorous review by global health organizations confirming the position of food safety agencies from more than 90 countries that approve aspartame's safety, we are not planning to change our recipes containing this ingredient.

“The Coca‑Cola Company has been a leader in providing consumers with a wide variety of beverage choices, including low and no-calorie beverages since we launched our first low-calorie brand in 1963. Going forward, we will continue to focus on this mission.”

The history behind the Coca-Cola recipe:

In 1892, Asa Candler became the sole proprietor of Coca‑Cola after purchasing the rights to the business. 

In 1919, Ernest Woodruff and a group of investors purchased the company from Candler and his family.

To finance the purchase, Woodruff arranged a loan, using the secret formula as collateral. He asked Candler's son to write the formula down and placed the paper in a vault in the Guaranty Bank in New York until the loan was repaid in 1925.

At that point, Woodruff reclaimed the secret formula, returned it to Atlanta and placed it in Trust Company Bank, now SunTrust, where it remained for 86 years until its recent move to the World of Coca‑Cola.

The 'recipe' is now an exhibit at the World of Coca‑Cola in Atlanta. 

"This was the perfect culmination to our 125th-anniversary celebrations," said Muhtar Kent, former chairman and CEO of The Coca‑Cola Company.

"By sharing this secret formula experience with our consumers, we celebrate both the rich history of the brand's beginnings and the moments of refreshment and happiness to come for future generations.

"This is yet another way we are recognizing and thanking everyone around the world who has made the Coca‑Cola brand what it is today."