Dong-A's 'Bacchus' Turns 60... "The History of Bacchus is the History of Korean Labor"

First Drink Released in August 1963
Cumulative Sales of 22.6 Billion Bottles

Dong-A Pharmaceutical announced on the 10th that it held a ceremony on the 8th at its headquarters auditorium in Yongdu-dong, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul, to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the release of the fatigue recovery drink, Bacchus.

Attendees are taking a commemorative photo at the Bacchus 60th Anniversary Ceremony held at the main auditorium of Dong-A Pharmaceutical headquarters in Yongdu-dong, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Dong-A Pharmaceutical]

The ceremony was organized to celebrate the birth of Bacchus and to prepare for the next 100 years. The event was attended by Ho-jin Choi, Vice Chairman of Dong-A Pharmaceutical, Sang-hwan Baek, President of Dong-A Pharmaceutical, Jae-hoon Jung, President of Dong-A Socio Holdings, along with executives and representatives from affiliated companies.

In his congratulatory speech, President Baek said, “As one article stated, 'The history of Bacchus is the history of Korean labor,' Bacchus has been a representative tonic that gave strength to the working-class people exhausted by work during Korea’s industrialization.” He added, “Since this is a meaningful year marking Bacchus’s 60th anniversary, we will return to basics, keep our original intention, and work even harder with Dong-A Pharmaceutical employees to make it an excellent product with a history that surpasses 100 years.”

Bacchus was first released in tablet form in 1961. It then went through an ampoule form, and in August 1963, the current drink type, 'Bacchus-D (Drink),' was launched. Accordingly, Dong-A Pharmaceutical has designated August 8, 1963, as the official release date of Bacchus and commemorates it.

In the early 1990s, it was renewed as ‘Bacchus-F (Forte),’ and in March 2005, ‘Bacchus-D (Double),’ which doubled the taurine content to 2000 mg, and a decaffeinated product ‘Bacchus Decaf’ for consumers sensitive to caffeine were introduced in the same year. Subsequently, Bacchus-flavored jelly and Eolbak (frozen Bacchus) were launched, establishing the brand as one enjoyed by all age groups.

In 2015, Bacchus became the first single product among domestic pharmaceutical companies to surpass 200 billion KRW in annual sales, and as of last year, cumulative sales exceeded 22.6 billion bottles. This amount is enough to circle the Earth 68 times if Bacchus-D bottles, approximately 12 cm tall, were stood upright.

To commemorate the 60th anniversary of Bacchus, Dong-A Pharmaceutical also produced special edition packages with a 60th-anniversary emblem for 10-bottle and 100-bottle packaging units. These can be found at nearby pharmacies until the end of this month and may sell out early.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.