Something is brewing (or bottled or mixed) in Coke! Social media, especially Twitter, is awash with tweets alleging wrongdoing at one of the bottling plants of Coca Cola India. Last week, Twitter was ablaze with tweets about an alarming incident involving a key bottler of Coca Cola India. The bottler allegedly used fake concentrate to make extra profits, putting public health and safety at grave risk. According to several tweets that grabbed eyeballs on the micro-blogging site, The Unnao factory of Ladhani Group, a bottler of Coca Cola, is now under the direct radar of Coca Cola headquarters in Atlanta.
The #WakeUpCocaCola campaign on Twitter last week saw activists accusing Coca-Cola of oversight related to the use of fake concentrate by one of its bottlers. The avalanche of tweets wreaked havoc among social media users, raising concerns over serious public health hazards. The campaign called on Coca-Cola to take responsibility for the actions of its bottler ahead of the company’s global CEO visit this month and implement measures to protect the environment and local communities. “Hey @CocaCola, you can't turn a blind eye to the shady practices happening at your bottling plants,” read a tweet.
While the veracity of news cannot be guaranteed on social media platforms, a string of tweets can always sow seeds of doubts and suspicions. However, we have seen the biggest news and scandals breaking on Twitter, including the momentous #meetoomovement. The Indian Premier League (IPL) scandal involving Lalit Modi is another example of how Twitter played a key role in breaking a major news story.
If the news is indeed true, it can deal a body blow to cola companies in India, underscoring concerns over the safety of non-alcoholic beverages.
“The fact that an employee of the bottling unit was sacked for using fake concentrate is just the tip of the iceberg. Who else is involved in this deceitful scheme?” said a tweet. A user also pointed out the fact that a very key and old-time employee of bottling company, SK Goel, has been removed after being found involved in fake concentration. "If the bottler of Coca Cola is willing to resort to such deceitful tactics, what else are they capable of?" a tweet questioned.
The Coca Cola company's silence on this matter is alarming, as pointed out by the tweets. “The coke India should now make public everything related to bottling operation and try to come out clean,” a tweet demanded. And all this is happening just on the eve of the Global CEO's visit to India to take stock of Indian operations. “It is learnt coke global CEO making a visit next month. He will have a tough call to take,” one of the tweets informed.