Are you planning to develop your soft drinks range and looking for an alternative to the major brands? One unlikely contender is looking to take on the might of Coca-Cola and Pepsi with its somewhat niche cola offering made from a natural spring - cow urine.

The cola drink, said to be made from a blend of medicinal herbs and cow urine, is the marketing brainchild of The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu nationalist conservative party in India, where the cow is considered sacred. The drink, branded Gau Jal, which translates as "cow water", is said to have been developed by the ’Cow Protection Department’ of the RSS, which is based in the holy city of Hardwar on the River Ganges.

The medicinal and ayurvedic herbs apparently prevent it from smelling horrible and it’s being touted as a cure to liver disease and even cancer.

The drink is said to be in the final stages of NPD and is undergoing testing, though how many human guinea pigs put themselves forward for sampling is another matter.