Is 'This' Coke As Fatal As The 'Other?'

Once upon a time, this is how it all started...

Gotu Laxmaiah, a poor farmer from Andhra Pradesh, took a real penchant for Coke. Not the kind of coke that you sniff, mind you. That's a deadly drug and too expensive for farmers of any country to afford. We are talking about Coca-Cola, or as it is lovingly called, Coke. He was delighted with The Real Thing! But funnily he didn't drink it! He sprayed it on several hectares of cotton and observed that "the pests began to die after the soft drink was sprayed on my cotton."

Now, Mr. Laxmaiah is not alone in this ingenious usage of Coca-Cola. It is said that a large number of farmers in India are using it as a pesticide, spraying their cotton and chilli fields with The Real Thing.

Guardian Unlimited reports that 'the properties of Coke have been discussed for years. It has been reported that it is a fine lavatory cleaner, a good windscreen wipe and an efficient rust spot remover. Uncorroborated reports from China claimed that the ill-fated new Coke was widely used in China as a spermicide.'

Centre For Science and Environment in Delhi claimed that the top 12 soft drink brands of Pepsi and Coca-Cola in India contained pesticides and insecticides in excess of limits set by the European Commission. Other Indian campaigners claim that Indian cola bottling plants are extracting so much water that local wells are running dry as the water table falls, and that the solid and liquid waste discharged by factories is polluting local groundwater.

Of course, the corporate spin doctors worked overtime and poof! all was well with Pepsi and Coca-Cola. The controversy magically disappeared! Suddenly facts and figures were furnished, and they were extremely acceptable. Satisfied, the Indian 'junta' went back to watching tv serials and cricket matches in no time.

But today, a small voice of dissent was heard in New York. Just a tiny crack in the 'we-won't-do-anything-wrong, we-are-responsible
-corporates' facade.

Speaking at a panel discussion organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry and the Earth Institute at Columbia University, representatives of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo insisted that beverage companies were not the largest users of water. They were replying to the criticism received from Indian Activists for excessive ground water usage.

It is a proven fact that the future water scenario for India is grim. Per capita water availability has slid from 5,000 cubic meters a year in 1950 to less than 2,000 cubic meters currently. It is estimated that if the current trends are not reversed, two thirds of the world will not have enough drinking water by 2025. Coke anyone?

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There's more dirt in your coke than you think. Find it all here.

'Coke, Pepsi deny using excessive ground water in India.' Read the original article here.