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PRESS RELEASE:
August 11, 2006
CSE
demolishes claims made by cola companies
Cola companies claim
that they are safe: but their bottles cannot be tested because they are
a complex product. They claim purity of products but resist any
regulation on purity.
We say:
This is the crux of the cola-pesticide issue that is now out in the
open. We have repeatedly said that regulations, not bans, are the
answer. But for this, the soft drink industry must stop its game of
hiding behind weak laws. This is a matter of public health. It cannot be
compromised.
New Delhi, August 11, 2006: A week after CSE released its report on
pesticide residues in soft drinks, the cola companies have finally come
out in the open, again claiming their products meet standards and are
safe. CSE asserts that the products tested by its lab do not meet the
norms, both Indian and European Union, as claimed and are unsafe.
In its recent press release, Coca-Cola resorts to another round of
obfuscation by claiming that there are "no detectable levels of
pesticides" in the soft drinks manufactured by it in India. It claims
that its soft drinks have been regularly tested and evaluated by a
world-renowned UK-based lab. Ironically, the same companies have repeatedly told the government ministries and comitees that their products are a complex matrix and therefore cannot be tested.
Also, the company has failed to disclose any
test results to prove the safety of its products. Three years ago, in
response to CSE's findings, soft drink companies had issued similar
statements claiming they were meeting "strict European Union standards".
But tests by several other labs had found that they did contain high
levels of pesticide residues and were not meeting the norms as they
claimed.
The cola companies are using the bogey of "good science" and "global
practice" in their opposition to be regulated. But these are issues that
have been discussed for the past three years, since the release of the
first CSE report on pesticides in soft drinks in 2003 and the subsequent
report of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). It will be recalled
that the JPC had endorsed the CSE findings and had asked government to
set final product standards for carbonated beverages, even if this was
not done in other countries. The companies have since resisted (and
colluded with government) to ensure that this final standard is not
notified (see the chronology of events at
http://www.cseindia.org/misc/cola-indepth/cola2006/events.htm).
This is clearly unacceptable as it means that soft drinks will remain
outside the ambit of regulations, says CSE. "Our demand to government
is: notify the finalised standards of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)
for carbonated beverages and make the regulation for this product
mandatory," says Sunita Narain, director, CSE.
On setting final product standards
Companies say that a standard for final product (the bottle of soft
drink) cannot be set. Instead, they want government to regulate their
input – agricultural raw commodities and water. In other words, they
only want standards for the water and sugar they use, not the product
that they sell on the shelves. They say this is not done anywhere in the
world. But the fact is that governments do set pesticide residue
standards for even more complex food like baby food and ice cream.
On working with government
Coca-Cola has claimed that it is working with the government bodies to
finalise criteria on pesticide residues. Yes, the soft drink companies
have been working, but only to oppose final product standards. The cola
companies have used one pretext or the other to avoid setting final
product standard. In fact, they have written to the government
departments protesting against finalisation of standards.
CSE asserts that there is no need for any further studies or reviews or
committees. The BIS committee has for the last three years addressed
each and every issue raised by the cola companies and, based on sound
science, has finalised the standards. Such tactics of the government are
meant to prevaricate and derail the entire process. The only thing now
left for the government is to notify the standards finalised by BIS.
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