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Wikipedia collaborators. (2011). The coca-cola company
[Fragment]. In Wikipedia. The free encyclopedia.
Retrieved February 2, 2011, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Coca-Cola_Company
THE COCA-COLA COMPANY
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a beverage retailer, manufacturer and Line1
marketer of non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups.
The company is best known for its flagship product Coca-
Cola, invented by pharmacist John Stith Pemberton in 1886.
The Coca-Cola formula and brand was bought in 1889 by Line 5
Asa Candler who incorporated The Coca-Cola Company in
1892. Besides its namesake Coca-Cola beverage, Coca-
Cola currently offers more than 500 brands in over 200
countries or territories and serves 1.6 billion servings each
Line 10
day.
The company operates a franchised distribution system dating from 1889 where The
Coca-Cola Company only produces syrup concentrate which is then sold to various
bottlers throughout the world who hold an exclusive territory. The Coca-Cola Company
owns its anchor bottler in North America, Coca-Cola Refreshments.
The Coca-Cola Company has been involved in a number of crime controversies and Line 15
lawsuits related to its relationship with human rights violations and other perceived
unethical practices.
A number of lawsuits have been issued in relation to its allegedly monopolistic and
discriminatory practices, some of which have been dismissed, some of which have
caused The Coca-Cola Company to change its business practices, and some of which Line 20
have been settled out of court. It has also been involved in a discrimination case. There
have been continuing criticisms regarding the Coca-Cola Company's relation to the
Middle East and U.S. foreign policy.
An issue with pesticides in groundwater in 2003 led to problems for the company when
an Indian NGO, Centre for Science and Environment, announced that it had found Line 25
cancer causing chemicals in Coca-Cola as well as other soft drinks produced by the
company, at levels 30 times that considered safe by the European Economic
Commission. This caused an 11 percent drop in Indian Coca-Cola sales. The Indian
Health Minister said the CSE tests were inaccurate, and said that the government's
tests found pesticide levels within India's standards but above EU standards. The UK- Line 30
based Central Science Laboratory, commissioned by Coke, found its products met EU
standards in 2006. Coke and the University of Michigan commissioned an independent
study of its bottling plants by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), which
reported in 2008 no unsafe chemicals in the water supply, though it criticized Coke for
the impact of its water usage on local supply. Line 35
The company has been criticized on a number of environmental issues. Critics claim
that the company's overuse of local water supplies in some locations has led to severe
shortages for regional farmers and the forced closure of some plants. Packagings used
in Coca-Cola’s products have a significant environmental impact. However, the
company strongly opposes attempts to introduce mechanisms such as container Line 40
deposit legislation.
In January 2009, the US consumer group the Center for Science in the Public Interest
filed a class-action lawsuit against Coca-Cola. The lawsuit was in regards to claims
made, along with the company's flavors, of Vitamin Water. Claims say that the 33 grams
of sugar are more harmful than the vitamins and other additives are helpful. Coca-Cola Line 45
insists the suit is "ridiculous."
