Posted on 08/20/2008 3:26:39 AM PDT by Man50D
Coca-Cola plans to celebrate Ramadan this year by decorating cans with a crescent moon and star – a widely recognized Islamic symbol.
Coca-Cola has hired a company named ATTIK to handle packaging, Brand Republic reports. Its Christmas cans are usually decorated with secular-themed images of Santa Claus, but McCartney asked the company whether it planned to introduce Christian symbols as well.
"When I learned the symbol of the Islamic faith will appear on Coca-Cola packaging during Ramadan 2008, I found myself wondering whether or not the Atlanta-based soft drink maker will soon include the Christian cross and Jewish star of David in future holiday packaging designs targeting people of those faiths," he wrote.
(Excerpt) Read more at worldnetdaily.com ...
Oh another thing, my Grandfather worked for Coca-cola for gosh knows how many years. I bet he would be upset with this but I can't be sure because he died in 1998 way before Muslims came to our country.
Wheres the logic in that? ...”
After sundown, they break the fast and party all night. That's probably what appealed to Coke.
Friends of mine who worked in the middle east said because of the fasting and partying, everyone is massively foul-tempered and there's a lot more family violence. They were always glad when it was over.
Something to commemorate, right? /sarc
Time to start drinking non-coke drinks.
Hey Mooselimbs, screw you and your religion of “peace”.
Can you say Royal Crown Cola?
‘I have no issue with them using it as long as it is fair across the board”
yeah muslims are known for being fair.
keep in mind the people making these “marketing” decisions may very well be muslim. spreading the word about this “peaceful” religion is not Coke’s mission. It is the mission of a muslim though.
Islam is promoted worldwide anyway......so is Christianity. If someone is going follow a religion because of something they saw on a soft drink can, well that's just pretty laughable IMO.
I emailed them that I won’t be buying their products any longer.
It just don't quit at Coke.
How about doing the Pledge of Allegiance at your stockholders meetings, Coke?
"[We're ] an 'international company,' Coca-Cola said, 'If a share owner were to propose that we pledge allegiance, we would certainly consider it in the context of our global business.'
Screw you too.
Looks like I’ll be drinking a lot of Dr. Pepper during September. I WON’T support Cokerabia.
“...soft drink maker will soon include the Christian cross and Jewish star of David in future holiday packaging designs targeting people of those faiths,” he wrote.”
Oh please. What a CHEESY thing to do. Don’t do Christians any favors by putting the cross of Christ on your product to boost your sales.
Doing something so obviously sales oriented and pandering is more likely to make me stop buying any Coke products.
To the muslims it’s all about religion. The laughs on you. ........................I’m talking about Coke and their marketing. There is a large market in the Muslim world they don’t want to lose. There’s billions of cans of Coke at stake. Coke sees $$$$$$$$,not religion, they sell their product all over the world.
Of course they will never put religious Christmas symbols on their cans! Why they believe in the separation of church and state! Symbols of a violent cult of death are OK, but not symbols of the birth of a child. No. That would be favoring one religion over another.
Bullvomit.
In addition to the focus on Ramadan and Eid, the Coca-Cola system has also implemented policies and programs to meet the needs of Muslim employees, such as providing halal food in cafeterias and organizing special prayer rooms at Company facilities. Several bottlers have also funded employee pilgrimage initiatives.
From Coke website
Honoring Ramadan Through Inspirational Ads And Community Programs
October 27, 2006 edition
Throughout the Muslim world, nearly 1.4 billion people celebrate the holy month of Ramadan by fasting between sunrise and sunset, praying and strengthening ties with family and friends. Each year, our Company honors Ramadan through a series of marketing activations, citizenship programs and internal initiatives focused on charity, generosity, unity and tolerance.
In a globalizing world, Ramadan presents an opportunity to showcase the true values of Islam and what it stands for. Because no other brand is as inclusive as and no other company is as diverse as Coca-Cola, we have a unique opportunity to play a valued role as an international bridge-builder and facilitator of dialogue during Ramadan.
Based on the lunar calendar, Ramadan started this year on Sept. 23 and ended last weekend with the festival of Eid el Fitr.
Our Ramadan-themed marketing programs continue to resonate with Muslim consumers. Building on the success of the 2004 “One Promise” TV commercial — which followed a female narrator across three continents as she sew conflicts arise and, eventually, resolved in the spirit of peace and goodwill — the Middle East Region launched a new ad in 12 countries based on the concept of sharing food during Iftar (the first meal Muslims eat to break their daily fast after sunset). The 2004 ad reached close to half a billion viewers in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Uganda, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Morocco, Malawi, Madagascar, Malaysia and China.
The region supported the commercial with its first-ever Ramadan under-the-cap promotion, which gave consumers the chance to win a free Coke® and enjoy their favorite beverage during Iftar.
Company divisions representing Muslim countries in the Middle East, Asia and Africa also collaborated with government ministries and non-government organizations (NGOs) to launch charity programs. These community efforts were not limited to financial donations; employee-driven initiatives were designed to tackle relevant, societal issues with the right strategic partners.
For example, the Nigeria and Equatorial Africa Division delivered food, prayer calendars and Coca-Cola products valued at $50,000 to needy Muslim families throughout Ghana, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Gambia. In Morocco, the Community Charity Campaign offered free meals to orphanages and hospitals in urban and rural areas through a network of NGOs, employees and community members. In Egypt, the Company placed 800 decorative charity bottles in businesses and Company offices. All proceeds were matched by our Company and donated to Abu Rish Children’s Hospital.
In Malaysia, the Company invited children from three orphanages to break the fast at the Kuala Lumpur Tower. In Indonesia, orphans joined Company employees in West Java for an Iftar meal. Both countries also donated products to mosques, schools and police and fire stations.
In addition to the focus on Ramadan and Eid, the Coca-Cola system has also implemented policies and programs to meet the needs of Muslim employees, such as providing halal food in cafeterias and organizing special prayer rooms at Company facilities. Several bottlers have also funded employee pilgrimage initiatives.
Why do this? Aren’t the muslims not allowed to drink Coke during Ramadan?
I think they should use polar bears as a symbol for Ramadan. You think they might be able to bring themselves to say “Merry Christmas” this year?
Well, I would boycott Coke; but I don’t drink soda anyway.
This ends my love of Sprite...Switching to generic today.
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