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Coke, Pepsi Face Troubles in India Over Pesticide Allegations
Rajesh Mahapatra
Associated Press
August 30, 2006
When it comes to managing brands, Coca Cola Co. and PepsiCo Inc. are
rated among the best in the world. But three weeks after allegations
erupted in India that their drinks contain pesticide residues, the
companies have done little to address the issue, apparently hoping
it will blow over.
The companies have taken a beating since a New Delhi-based private
research group, the Center for Science and Environment, made the allegations
Aug. 3.
Seven of India's 28 states have since imposed partial or complete
bans on Coke, Pepsi, Sprite and other drinks from the companies. More
than 10,000 schools have banned the beverages.
So far, there have been scattered, small demonstrations, but environmentalist
groups are threatening larger protests to blockade the companies'
90 plants in India for five days in November. They're calling the
campaign, "Coke, Pepsi, Quit India."
In response, Coca Cola India and PepsiCo India have taken out newspaper
advertisements saying their products adhere to uniform, international
standards, and released brief statements to the media making the same
claims.
Three of Coca Cola's bottling agents have held press conferences for
local reporters in the cities of Jaipur, Lucknow and Calcutta, and
officials from a British laboratory that tested Coke samples -- and
said they contained no unsafe pesticides -- spoke to journalists in
New Delhi last week.
But the companies' executives haven't held any news conference since
the allegations surfaced. They have generally kept a low profile and
also haven't released sales figures since the allegations were made.
"So far we haven't seen a swift response," said Atul Phadnis, chief
analyst at Media e2e, a Bombay-based company that tracks media campaigns.
For nearly three weeks, officials from Indian units of Coke and Pepsi
failed to respond to telephone messages left by The Associated Press
seeking additional comment.
On Saturday, however, Coca Cola officials responded saying the issue
is very complex from a technical point of view and requires extensive
briefing by scientific experts, and that the company has been holding
meetings with major Indian media organizations to do this.
The company is also reaching out to other stake holders such as government
departments, business groups and nongovernmental groups, including
the Center for Science and Environment, the group that made the allegations,
said Kenth Kaerhoeg, Coca Cola's Asia Pacific spokesman.
In his e-mail, Kaerhoeg said the company has also organized visits
by consumer groups to some of its plants. But he won't disclose sales
figures, which many believe have declined in recent weeks.
"As things stand today, it is difficult to predict the impact of the
pesticide controversy on sale of soft drinks," Kaerhoeg said.
Indians -- commoners and experts alike -- have urged the companies
to take a more public stance.
"It looks as if they are hiding something from us. They need to communicate
more to come clean on the issue," said Anirban Sarkar, a senior manager
at New Delhi's upmarket Olive Bar and Kitchen.
Phadnis, the media analyst, said the cola companies' crisis is more
serious this time than three years ago, when the same group, the Center
for Science and Environment, first brought allegations of pesticide
contamination in Coke, Pepsi and other soft drinks. No state banned
the beverages then and there were mild street protests.
Although state government officials insist that health concerns, not
ideology, were guiding their decisions, business leaders warn the
festering controversy could jeopardize foreign investment into India.
Some experts say it underscores how quickly foreign companies can
get hurt by nationalism in a developing country like India whose economy
for decades was largely closed to the outside world.
"We have had a history of taking potshots at multinational corporations,"
said Suhel Seth, a top Indian marketing executive who is on the board
of Coca-Cola India. "It is not that we love American companies less,
but we love fake nationalism more."
Although many food products in India contain harmful pesticides, the
Center for Science and Environment said it focused on Coca Cola and
PepsiCo because they account for nearly 80 percent of India's $2 billion
soda market.
Officials from the seven states that enacted bans insist their only
concern is health.
"Public health is our priority," said R. Ashok, the health minister
for the southern state of Karnataka, which is suing the cola companies
in court for alleged food adulteration.
Karnataka was the only one of the seven states that did its own tests
before announcing a ban. None of the other states followed proper
legal procedures, such as seeking explanations from the companies
before banning their products.
Karnataka and five other states have prohibited the sale or consumption
of the drinks in state-run state schools and hospitals as well as
in government offices. One state, Kerala in the south, has completely
banned the manufacture or sale of the drinks, a prohibition temporarily
upheld by the state's High Court on Friday.
None of the states has reversed its decisions even after India's federal
Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss told parliament on Tuesday that
the CSE's data was flawed.
Complicating matters further is the lack of national standards for
many consumer products in India, which yet to institute a regulatory
framework that would help address consumer, corporate and investor
concerns.
The lack of standards also raises suspicions, and the CSE alleges
Coke and Pepsi have pressured the government to delay regulations
so that the companies can avoid stricter filtering of pesticides and
other chemicals in the polluted groundwater used to make their drinks.
The companies counter that they are helping Indian government agencies
come up with standards, but say the process takes time. Ramadoss has
promised regulations by next year.
Media analyst Phadnis said he believes both Coca Cola and PepsiCo
will realize the stakes in India are too high and adopt a more public
approach to the issue.
"We have not heard the last word yet," he said.
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