Following on from our Not So Innocent Anymore post at the weekend regarding Innocent's sell-out to Coca-Cola, here are the responses from my Facebook page. Please feel free to add comments and opinion below.
David: Dam right! Tell it Rachel!
Karen: Yawn.....isn't there better things to put your "worry energies" into?
Rache: Hi Karen, Don't worry, I'm not expending any 'worry energy' here, simply promoting transparency. We all have our own definitions of what's 'better' and important in life. Making considered ethical choices about what I consume, purchase and thereby support is one that is very important for me.
Julian: Unless Coke feel they need to embrace the ideals that innocent have, or is that a bit optimistic, it's a bit like Body Shop and L'Oreal and Green & Black's and Cadburys, who knows what the motives are.
Karen: wider distribution of their great product is a good objective I would have thought. Coca-Cola have fanstasitc distribution...and actually some great products in their portfolio, 3,000 at last count.
Karen: And Rachel, I agree everyone is entitled to their opinion. :-)
Working for Coca-Cola I see a lot of opinions on facebook and other social media..not all of it true. I'm constantly surprised just how many people and time and effort is spent on demonising Coca-Cola (from poisoning India's water supply to killing people in Columbia) with none of the allegations having stood up in court.
David: Like this Karen? http://tinyurl.com/dasaniScam
Ecomonkey Response:
@Julian: Yes, it would be nice to think that Coke feel they need to embrace some of Innocent's ideals and I don't doubt that there are some people working for Coke who would love the organisation to be more ethical and some who do what they can to influence the company in this way. Based on Coke's previous and current record however it would seem far more likely that the acquisition is based on financial and competitive gain rather than any moral reasons.
Personally, I think the motives of brands like Coke, L'Oreal and Cadbury are clear - they have all captured a larger slice of the market and can appear (temporarily, in the public eye at least) to be making ethical and sustainable efforts. This is greenwash because there has been little or no evidence of any of these acquisitions resulting in the larger companies making significant moves towards putting ethics above profit.
Cadbury's recent transfer from unfair to Fairtrade cocoa in one of its vast range of products is undoubtedly a step in the right direction but for those who choose not to support unethical practices such as child labour and unfair wages we will not be happy until all the cocoa and sugar used in all Cadbury products are fairly traded. And then of course, some of us will be pushing for organic milk to further ensure the health and safety of all concerned in the process of bringing chocolate products from farmer to consumer.
Since the take over of Body Shop, L'Oreal continue to produce and market over packaged products full of toxic and unfairly traded ingredients so there seems to be no real change there.
@Karen: Wider distribution is clearly a great incentive for Innocent to accept finance from another company. I question whether the ethical values on which Innocent are founded and on which many of their customers rely, sit well with a company such as Coca-Cola. In my opinion, and that of many others who actively seek to support organisations with high ethical credentials, the two do not go together at all.
3,000 products is a large number. This amount must surely help to increase Coke's profit. Great. What about the consumers and the farmers and the bottlers and the distributors and the people who depend on the water supply used to make the products? Do all of these people benefit from 3,000 products? What about the planet that has to cope with the waste 3,000 products generates?
It is true that Coca-Cola have a vast distribution network. It is a shame that these networks are used to promote sugary drinks rather than healthy, beneficial products, particularly in countries where living standards are relatively low and where clean, safe drinking water is not a given.
I'm constantly surprised that so many people are so addicted to Coke and blinded by 'clever' advertising that they cannot see the damage being done to themselves and to those involved in producing products such as Coke. Only today I read of someone who drank 3-4 cans of Coke a day until at 40 he developed diabetes which he openly blames on his habit. This is sad but the worst part of his story is that instead of deciding to drink water or fruit juice he substituted Coke for Coke Zero - that undying loyalty to a unhealthy brand amazes me!
I'm also constantly surprised by just how many people, time, effort and money is spent on promoting Coca-Cola and trying to make the company and its products appear faultless. Wouldn't these resources be better spent cleaning up water supplies in India, supporting families that have suffered as a result of Coke's practices, using the network in parts of Africa for example to supply much needed medical equipment (see the ColaLife campaign), ensuring fair trade practices in all of Coke's franchises, developing genuinely nutritious products, less wasteful packaging and adequate recycling facilities?
Anti-Coke feelings are generally not a demonisation of one company so much as a desire to live in a world where people and planet are put before profit. If this means hassling certain organisations until they change their ways and encouraging consumers to make informed choices then that's what will continue to happen until positive change takes place.
Further Info:
Belching Out The Devil, Mark Thomas / India Resource Centre / Killer Coke / Mark Thomas / ColaLife
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