Strait of Hormuz Closure Disrupts Aluminum Supplies, Causing Diet Coke Shortages in India

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz caused by the war in Iran has led to a shortage of aluminum cans in India, leaving shops struggling to keep Diet Coke on the shelves. The Persian Gulf accounts for around 9% of global aluminum production. Suppliers told Reuters that some orders were not being fulfilled due to a can shortage caused by the situation in the Gulf.

Diet Coke is not sold in plastic bottles in India. Demand for Diet Coke and drinks with alternative sweeteners has surged in the country, where nearly 10% of the adult population is diabetic according to a 2023 study by the Indian Council of Medical Research.

The closure is also disrupting gas, energy costs, cooking fuel and fertilizers in parts of Asia, with liquified petroleum gas cylinders in India mostly imported from the Gulf and now in short supply.

Ishika Gupta, a 25-year-old marketing and design consultant based in New Delhi, started an Instagram page dedicated to Diet Coke a month before the war in Iran broke out. She described herself as an “avid drinker” of Diet Coke. Gupta threw a Diet Coke-themed party on April 26 in New Delhi after tickets sold out.

Around 150 people showed up at Ishika Gupta's Diet Coke party on April 26. Attendees wore Coke-themed outfits, danced to house and pop music, and made their own Diet Coke concoctions inspired by Dua Lipa’s recipes. No alcohol was served at Ishika Gupta's Diet Coke parties.

“It was a joke,” Ishika Gupta said. ” She added that the party was a hit with Gen Zers who are craving more alcohol-free experiences. Gupta said it was “some cosmic alignment” that she started her Instagram page before the war in Iran.

“We were celebrating the very thing that there was so-called crisis for,” she added. The venue procured supplies through its distributor even as the drink was sold out on several online delivery platforms. In the neighboring city of Gurugram, the Marièta restaurant reached out to Ishika Gupta about hosting a second Diet Coke party.

Shruti Sharma, head of marketing at the Marièta restaurant in Gurugram, said younger people now like it when there is a scarcity of something and they find creativity and fun in something completely unexpected. Each ticket for the second Diet Coke party costs around $16 and includes two cans of Diet Coke, mixers, snacks, and Coke-themed decorations.

The party doubles as a listening session for Drake’s new album “Iceman,” dropping the same day.

No alcohol was served at that event either. Coca-Cola did not respond to a request for comment on the shortages. @NBCNews reported that the shipping logjam in the Persian Gulf is having unexpected impacts beyond the broader disruptions to energy and cooking fuel across Asia.

The broader effects of the Strait of Hormuz closure continue to ripple through Asian economies, with governments facing higher oil prices and difficult trade-offs between subsidies, business activity and household needs. In India the can shortage has turned a health-conscious preference for zero-sugar drinks into a focal point for Gen Z creativity amid scarcity.