- In March’01 only total 6540 million bottles were marketed in
- Growth rate of the soft drink market is around 7-8%
- Summer, which stays for around 70-75 days in India, contributes more than 50% of yearly sales of soft-drinks.
- Around 60% of total non-alcoholic drinks are only cola based and around 36% is non-cola based carbonated drinks (in combined called soft drinks), which makes around 96% market share in the drinks and around 4% takes non carbonated drinks (like, mango based mazza and slice).
- There are only two major players in
- Coca-Cola first came in
- Currently the brands: Thumps Up, Limca and Gold Spot which is sold under Coca cola roof was previously a part of Parle Beverages. Coca Cola also bought soft drink brands
- The so called major brand in
- PepsiCo also has bought over Mumbai based Duke’s range of soft drink brands.
- Total market share of both of these companies in 2002 is around Rs. 6247 crores.
Now some serious part of soft-drinks:
- Most of the soft drinks contains: carbon dioxide, artificial sweeteners like aspartame, saccharin, acesulfame-K etc., and flavouring agents like caffeine, acids like phosphoric acid, some preservatives and excessive sugar.
- Caffeine (Also found in Chocolates and Coffee)
- Large amounts of caffeine consumption can cause diseases and disorders such as insomnia, nervousness, anxiety, irritability, and deviations from the normal heart rate.
- A major concern about caffeine is that it increases the excretion of calcium in urine, which increases the risk for osteoporosis in heavy caffeine consumers. Some epidemiological studies correlate exposure to caffeine during pregnancy to the occurrence of congenital malformations, foetal growth retardation, miscarriages (spontaneous abortions), behavioural effects and maternal fertility problems.
- Artificial Sweeteners (Also found in the Chewing-Gum like Orbit)
- Artificial sweeteners like saccharin, aspartame and acesulfame-K have been linked with numerous diseases like cancer increasingly.
- Saccharin has been linked in human studies to urinary-bladder cancer and in animal studies to cancers of the bladder and other organs (Lancet 1980;i:837-840. Env. Health Perspectives 1998; 25:173-200).
- Aspartame is a potent neurotoxin and endocrine disrupter.
- The overall health impact of artificial sweeteners can be gauged by the fact that they are regulated by means of Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI), similar to toxic substances like pesticides.
Source: FAO Nutrition Meetings Report Series, WHO/Food Additives; http://www.inchem.org/pages/jecfa.html
- Acids and Carbon Dioxide
- Dentists around the world are reporting complete loss of the enamel on the front teeth in teenaged boys and girls, who habitually drink soft drinks.
- The culprit is phosphoric acid in soft drinks, which causes tooth rot, as well as digestive problems and bone loss. Phosphoric acid has also been associated with calcium loss and kidney stones in numerous medical studies.
- The most common pesticides detected in the soft drink samples were – Lindane, δ -HCH, Chlorpyrifos, Heptachlor and Malathion.
- Lindane
- It damages human liver, kidney, neural and immune systems and induces birth defects, cancer and death. Chronic administration results in endocrine disruption in birds as well as in mammals.
- Treatment with 1-40 mg of lindane/kg of body weight may adversely affect reproductive performance in males. In females lindane decreases sexual receptivity.
- Lindane is a potent carcinogen. Rats exposed to gamma HCH showed evidence of liver cancer.
- Chlorpyrifos
- Chlorpyrifos, one of the most widely used organophosphorus pesticide and has been reported to be a developmental neurotoxicant specifically targeting the immature brain.
- Malathion
- Malathion, a known cholinesterase inhibitor. Primary site of action in insects is nervous system.
Source: Analysis of Pesticide Residues in Soft drinks - August 2, 2006 by Centre for Science and Environment
You are officially now the Medha patkar for cola companies
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