New Lawsuit Alleges Coca-Cola, American Beverage Association Deceiving Public About Soda-Related Health Problems
Despite the scientifically established link between consuming sugar drinks and obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease, the Coca-Cola Company and its trade association, the American Beverage Association, deceive consumers by denying and obscuring soda’s link to those diseases, according to a lawsuit filed today. Bringing the action filed today in the Superior Court of […]
PHAI Joins Center for Science in the Public Interest in Filing Lawsuit Against Coca-Cola for Deceptive Marketing
BOSTON – Two non-profits that use litigation as a public health strategy have joined forces in a lawsuit accusing the Coca-Cola Company (“Coke”) along with the American Beverage Association (“ABA”) of misleading the public about the science that links heart disease, obesity, and diabetes to consumption of sugary beverages. For years, the Public Health Advocacy […]
No More Heart Health Valentines from Coke
By Cara Wilking, JD, Consulting Attorney, Public Health Advocacy Institute [PLEASE NOTE: This blog post was prepared prior to unexplained changes to Coca-Cola’s database of its funding of organizations in the United States. The information reflects the dollar amounts initially reported by Coca-Cola in the Fall of 2015.] For years, the month of February has […]
Coke’s Balancing Act
By Cara Wilking, JD, Consulting Attorney The Coca-Cola Company’s pouring of millions of dollars into the Global Energy Balance Network (GEBN), a front group focused on exercise as opposed to diet to combat obesity, has crystallized an issue that the public health community has long been concerned about: the role of industry funding to research […]
Banned In the Cage: How Xyience and NOS Unfairly and Deceptively Market Energy Drinks
by Cara Wilking, J.D., Rebecca Leff and Katelyn Blaney The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has its roots in “cage-fighting” and was long considered too wild and violent for mainstream sports fans. Not long ago cage-fighting was shunned by parents, banned by states and rejected by broadcast networks and cable operators for its brutality. While cage-fighting […]
NYC’s new soda size restriction should survive any legal challenge (but, so far, hasn’t): An Update
Update: July 30, 2013 At this point, the Supreme Court of NY County (March 11, 2013) and the Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Dept. (today) have ruled that the sugary beverage serving size cap in New York is invalid. The case name is: In re New York Statewide Coalition of Hispanic Chambers of Commerce, et al. […]
PHAI’s Friedman and Gottlieb Co-author: “Soda and Tobacco Industry Corporate Social Responsibility Campaigns: How Do They Compare?” in PLoS Medicine
PHAI senior staff attorney Lissy Friedman and executive director Mark Gottlieb collaborated with Lori Dorfman, Andrew Cheyne and Asiya Wadud of the Berkeley Media Studies Group to produce this article published today in PLoS Medicine. Soda companies’ PR campaigns are bad for health: Health advocates need to organize strong public health campaigns to educate the […]
The Hidden Energy Costs of School Beverage Vending Machines
PHAI has produced a FACT SHEET detailing state-by-state electricity costs of traditional cold beverage vending machines. A traditional cold beverage vending machine consumes an estimated 3000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year (kWh/yr). That translates to an average annual energy cost of $313 per machine. Even more energy efficient machines still use between 1200 and 1500 kWh/yr. When multiplied over […]
Organizations that Care About Health Should Play No Part in the Soft Drink Industry’s Effort to Rehabilitate Its Public Image
by Cara Wilking, J.D. CLICK HERE DOWNLOAD THIS POST AS A PDF INTRODUCTION The United States has the highest per capita rate of carbonated soft drink consumption in the world at 736 eight-ounce servings or 46 gallons per person in 2009.[1] The soft drink industry is dominated by three major companies: The Coca-Cola Company (“Coke”), […]
PHAI’s Wilking urges repeal of MA sales tax exemption for soda as first step in Boston Globe Letter to Editor
In a May 18, 2011 Letter to the Editor published in the Boston Globe, PHAI Staff Attorney Cara Wilking argues that elimination of the sales tax exemption for sodas is a reasonable first step to reduce the impact of sugary drinks on obesity. However, a per ounce excise tax would have a more significant impact, […]
