Coke Bails on White Cans, But Not on Climate Alarmism

National Legal & Policy Center ^ | December 1, 2011 | Paul Chesser

[jazusamo]

Coca-Cola ’s just-announced holiday campaign to supposedly protect Arctic polar bear habitat – highlighted by the company changing its iconic red cans to white – is ending, with the company killing off its new packaging two months earlier than planned.

No, Coke hasn’t seen the light on its disguised support for the global warming hoax . The images of polar bears will instead appear on redesigned red cans, after many consumers mistakenly grabbed the white cans believing they were selecting the silver-canned Diet Coke.

For example, the Wall Street Journal reported that in recent days about a half-dozen customers at an Atlanta deli returned their opened cans of “polar bear” Coke because they believed they had chosen Diet Coke. They were given the sugar-free colas without additional charge.

And other classic Coke drinkers said their sodas tasted differently in the white cans than they did in the red ones. The Journal noted a YouTube video in which a blindfolded woman taste tested classic Coke in both colored cans, and then held up the polar bear can and proclaimed, “This is the funky one!”

The ad campaign promoted the alleged need to protect polar bears, and Coca-Cola plans to donate $3 million to environmental pressure group World Wildlife Fund. But as NLPC has reported, the extent of WWF’s polar bear habitat “protection” only goes so far as their lobbying and litigation efforts to stop the increase of greenhouse gases emitted from the burning of fossil fuels for energy. In other words, the entire planet is their “habitat” and humans must stop burning coal, oil and natural gas for their selfish energy needs.

Meanwhile WWF, a global organization, hypocritically continues to spend millions of dollars annually on travel for staff and donors. Among the group’s stated beliefs are that airline travel is among the greatest causes of anthropogenic global warming, because of the greenhouse gas emissions from burning jet fuel.

That Coke customers’ money was diverted to WWF for its climate activism offended a number of them, which they expressed on Coca-Cola’s official blog (typos and Internet lingo have been corrected):

FYI, global warming has been unmasked as a scam. Coke jumping on the bandwagon to appease environmental activists is not my idea of good business. I will not be buying Coke for the holidays in protest of the move. I am positive many more people will follow. Most Americans are sick of this issue being shoved down our throats by politicians and now we have to endure it from a major corporation during the holidays? My money will be better spent elsewhere.

Since I despise the WWF, I will not be purchasing any Coke in the white cans. This is not a good marketing program; the time is over for pandering to global warming and climate change believers. It's a hoax, and your marketing research is flawed.

I am so disappointed that Coca-Cola has bought into the hoax of manmade global warming. You make a fine product, but you have been duped into thinking you are helping the environment by giving tons of money to that scam artist WWF. Scaring little kids and gullible adults into thinking that all the polar bears are going to drown - shame on WWF and everyone else like them.

Similarly, Dr. Ileana Johnson Paugh – who lived for 20 years under communism in Romania – wrote in the Canada Free Press about Coke’s support of WWF and similar organizations, “Every time global organizations and companies use global governance to tell us how to live, how to be better stewards of the environment, we are losing our freedom to govern ourselves.”

Laughably, but unsurprisingly, Coke has put a positive spin on the rollout of the revised (red) polar bear can, calling it “Arctic Home Phase II” and “the next collectible can featuring the white polar bears on the iconic Coca-Cola red backdrop. Consider these red cans an early holiday gift for collectors!” Problems related to the white can are not mentioned.

Rick Aristotle Munarriz of The Motley Fool called the white cans the company’s “biggest marketing blunder since New Coke,” and forecasted slow growth.

“This is just a flat-out boneheaded move by Coca-Cola,” Munarriz wrote. “Loyalists know the Coca-Cola color scheme. Regular Coke is red. Diet Coke is silver. Caffeine-free Coke is gold. White really is too close a kissing cousin to silver, and it's easy to see why folks grabbing the cans at convenience stores, delis, or perhaps even their own refrigerators may make the honest mistake.”

Considering the off-putting nature of Coke’s foray into the phony global warming issue – which threatens to make scarce the cheap, efficient energy resources that humans need to live healthier lives – the company ought to concern itself more with its intentional sins.

Paul Chesser is an associate fellow for the National Legal and Policy Center.

[jazusamo]

Coca Cola messed up big time and lost consumers over this enviro-nazi WWF fiasco, not to mention the can color blunder.

[jazusamo]

Being in the business....I can tell you this will go down as one of the worst marketing promotions Coke has done

You nailed it on Coca Cola changing the color Popman! :-)

[jazusamo]

Ping!

[trumandogz]

“Coca Cola messed up big time and lost consumers over this enviro-nazi WWF fiasco, not to mention the can color blunder.”

Without a doubt, the decision by Coca Cola to donate money to the WWF will lead to a massive World Wide Boycott of Coca Cola that will within the month lead to the complete bankruptcy of the company.

No more coke in the world, just Pepsi.

[steelyourfaith]

Thanx for the ping !

 

Beam me to Planet Gore !

[M1903A1]

LOL...just what I thought would happen!!!

No matter how *Important* or PC the issue, there are some things ya just don’t mess with....

[Montanabound]

Pepsi, with their Obama logo.

[the OlLine Rebel]

I just recently noticed that whole thing. I glimpsed these silver cans and wondered what they were. I saw some reference to “saving the world” BS and also thought it was weird their prime original product was, uh, out of color.

Stupid move.

And I’m tired of these big companies toeing the government NAZI lines. Our society is far too full of these fools to have all this; we’re at the tipping point when some 50% of our people believe this garbage and share in the religion.

[thulldud]

Guess I’ll stick with Royal Crown.

[the OlLine Rebel]

Pepsi is Obama-supporting.

Unfortunately, my husband (and apparently everyone in PA, who never realized they had almost only Pepsi plants in their areas) is hooked on Pepsi and will always pick that unless there’s no choice at the restaurant.

So, I’m stuck buying Pepsi regularly. meanwhile I don’t drink much soda anymore, except at restaurants (fountain mixes are SOOO much better, especially for Coke which has had major carbonation problems for 20 years).

[Zathras]

Coke is more concerned about getting sued by the Green’s for CO2 emission from carbonated drinks than they are having a marketing dept who knows what they are doing.

Sounds like Obummer would be qualified as CEO of CokeHead.

[Raven6]

Okay... So I bought a case of these "white can" Coca-Colas because I am a Coca-Cola drinker. I don't get a chance to watch much TV, and thus had not seen the ads promoting the Polar Bear cause and the connection to WWF. I'm used to seeing changes on the cans, since they change from one sport season to the next (the case I purchased before the polar bear cans had cans with footballs on them), or one holiday season to another. I just thought "okay, polar bears..."

Then, when I finally got down to opening a can from the "polar bear" case... Well... I thought "Dang it, these things don't taste right!" My wife, the Dr. Pepper drinker, said she thought they tasted just like the regular Cokes. So I just wrote it off to "maybe it's the fact that I've had a touch of a cold and it is effecting the way things taste."

So in reading the article, I see this:

"And other classic Coke drinkers said their sodas tasted differently in the white cans than they did in the red ones. The Journal noted a YouTube video in which a blindfolded woman taste tested classic Coke in both colored cans, and then held up the polar bear can and proclaimed, “This is the funky one!”

AAAHHHHH HAAAHHHH! It isn't just me and a touch of a cold. These things really don't taste like a real Coca-Cola!!! They do taste funky!

Why can't companies just stick with the product that has made them profitable for years and has kept them as the king of the marketplace? I mean d@mn it Coke - didn't you learn anything from that "New Coke" fiasco?

[dainbramaged]

Guess I’ll stick with Royal Crown. Darn right, RC Cola and a Moonpie.

[jazusamo]

I believe you're right and other large companies have kowtowed to the enviro-nazis also, Pepsi and Walmart for two.

[colorado tanker]

But first place will always be reserved for New Coke!

[dis.kevin]

Me too, better than Coke or Pepsi.

[Never on my watch]

These things really don't taste like a real Coca-Cola!!! They do taste funky!

That's because they added the Global Warming Kool-Aid.

[donhunt]

I just drank a Coke as it was the only drink in the fridge. It tasted like crap. .... No, it tasted like sugar water, not like Coke should.

Must be the artificial sugar they’re now using.

[discostu]

The white can caused confusion, but there’s never money to be lost “supporting” the greenies. Greenies have proven they’ll buy anything from any company that says they care about the environment, non-greenies buy the product they like and don’t care, it’s a win win.

[Casie]

I shifted a dozen cases at Walmart yesterday to get to the regular red boxes. A hard working store stocker saw me do it and never even asked.