Corporations

Talking Back to Coke!

richard — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:51:36 -0600

Dear water activists,

In a recent interview with the BBC, Coca-Cola Chairman Neville Isdell defended the role the corporation is playing in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games as a sponsor, even though there have been extensive protests over China’s role in Tibet and Darfur, as well as domestic human rights abuses and suppression of press freedom: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7494149.stm

Documentary claims Nestle spied on anti-globalisation group

richard — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 10:02:10 -0600

June 13, 2008, Agence France Presse - A documentary aired by francophone Swiss television station TSR has accused global food giant Nestle of having sent a spy to infiltrate an anti-globalisation group for one year.

Coke’s Annual Meeting of Contradictions

richard — Mon, 26 May 2008 07:34:27 -0600

Richard Girard, Polaris Institute, May 26, 2008 – As I sat in the plush confines of the Hotel Dupont’s ballroom at the Coca Cola Company’s annual meeting of shareowners on April 16, I listened as the CEO elect Muhtar Kent laid bare the company’s duplicity.

Carlsberg the latest to suffer water backlash

richard — Fri, 09 May 2008 08:16:31 -0600

Jenny Wiggins, May 8, 2008, Financial Times - Carlsberg, which owns the water brands, Ramlosa and Arkina, yesterday underscored the growing environmental backlash against bottled water by warning of falling sales in Europe as people switch to tap water.

125 Public Interest Leaders Urge U.N. to Withdraw Support from CEO Water Mandate

richard — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:25:21 -0700

New York - Leaders from more than 125 environmental, public health, water justice, human rights and corporate accountability organizations in 35 countries, are urging United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to withdraw his support from the CEO Water Mandate.

Pulling Heart Strings for Profit: How the Bottled Water Industry is Fighting the Backlash

richard — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 07:21:22 -0700

Richard Girard, The Polaris Institute, March 13, 2008 - World Water Day 2008 will see a flurry of announcements from bottled water companies who claim to be helping solve the globe’s water crisis. The catch is that these altruistic claims are intimately tied to major advertising campaigns designed to convince the public to buy their products.

Coca-Cola Ally Recommends Bottling Plant Closure in India

richard — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 08:56:02 -0700

New Report Highlights Coca-Cola's Shortcomings in India - India Resource Center Press Release, January 15, 2007
Contacts:
Rameshwar Kudi, India (Hindi only) +91 9414049053
Amit Srivastava, India +91 98103 46161 US + 1 415 336 7584

UK's Channel 4 documentary on Coca Cola

richard — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 10:59:25 -0700

On Monday November 19th, the UK's Channel 4 aired "Dispatches: Mark Thomas on Coca-Cola", a 46 minute documentary highlighting Coke's Human Rights and Environmental abuses around the world.

Watch documentary here

From Channel 4's website:

Southern Exposure: Private Canadian Bottled Water Company Moves South

richard — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 09:27:53 -0700

Polaris Institute, November 14, 2007 - In October of this year, Canada’s largest private label bottled water company, Ice River Springs (also known as Aquafarms and Aquafarms 93) announced plans to open two new water bottling plants in the United States. One plant will be located near the New Hampshire/Vermont border and another in Indiana.

Vivendi wins decade-long Argentina legal battle

richard — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 09:20:20 -0600

PARIS, Aug 21 (Reuters) - French media and telecoms group Vivendi said on Tuesday it had been awarded $105 million in compensation at the end of a decade-long dispute with Argentinian authorities about a former water concession.