Coca-Cola Zero Banned in Venezuela

Atlanta based Coca-Cola is facing a ban in Venezuela. The country is shunning the product Coca-Cola Zero because they say it contains an artificial sweetener allegedly harmful to the health. Venezuela’s health ministry said in a statement tests show the no calorie soft drink contains sodium cyclamate.

The US prohibits the use of cyclamates in human food because of health safety concerns.

Coca-Cola Company's use of the sweetener in Coca-Cola Zero has met with resistance elsewhere in Latin America.

A spokesperson for the company's local affiliate says Coca-Cola Zero in Venezuela does not contain the sweetener or any other harmful ingredients, but they’re complying with the order to halt production.

(Associated Press)

Delta, Coke Post 1st-Q Numbers

Major Georgia companies Delta Airlines and Coca-Cola are out with their first-quarter earnings reports, with both continuing to weather the economic storm.

Atlanta-based Delta was hit with a net loss of $794-million. Its struggles included bad bets on future fuel costs. To help make up the deficit, the world’s largest airline announced a new $50 fee for most passengers checking a second bag on international flights.

For Atlanta-based beverage maker Coca-Cola, it reported a net income loss of more than $1.3 billion in the first quarter--around 10-percent.

Coca-Cola Lauded For Hybrid Truck Fleet

Coca-Cola was recognized Friday by federal environmental officials for its role in getting more cleaner fuel-burning delivery trucks on the road. The vehicles use about a third less fuel and put-out a third fewer emissions.

The Atlanta-based beverage-maker will roll-out 185 new standard bulk hybrid delivery trucks throughout the year. Combined with its smaller-scale trucks already in service, Coca-Cola’s more than 300 hybrid delivery vehicles makes it the largest hybrid fleet in North America.

Governor Sonny Perdue praised Coca-Cola for "doing what’s right" for the environment:

"These are investments that make a difference in our enviroment and sustainability. They did it in water, they're doing it in recycling and re-usability, and energy conservation. It's a company that takes our theme of Conserve Georgia and applies it to where-ever they do business."

The hybrid delivery trucks use about a third less fuel, and put-out a third fewer emissions.

3rd QTR reports in: Coca-Cola up; Delta down

In business news, despite week domestic sales, the nation's largest soft drink maker beat analyst’s predictions overseas and performed better than expected here at home. International sales at Atlanta based Coca-Cola were boosted in part because of the booming South East Asian markets. Coca-Cola saw increased demand for its carbonated drinks, as well as a 10 percent growth in non-carbonated drinks, like juices and bottled water. Overall the company reported a 14 percent profit increase for third quarter 2008. Wall Street had predicted Coca-Cola to make 77 cents per share. Instead, earnings came in at 81 cents per share, 10 cents higher than the same period a year ago. In other business news, Delta Airlines lost 50 million dollars during the three months ending September 26. The nation’s largest airline blamed the loss on rising fuel costs. This time last year, Delta reported a profit of $220 million. Barring any federal roadblock, Delta plans to merge with Minneapolis-based Northwest Airlines by the end of the year. By eliminating redundant routes, the company should see some relief from rising oil prices.

Coke 1st-quarter profits beat expectations

Coca-Cola says its profits in the 1st quarter of this year rose 19-percent-—that’s based on a 21-percent jump in sales. The results reported by the Atlanta-based beverage maker beat Wall Street expectations. Coca-Cola says profit was 1.5 billion dollars in the three months ending March 28th. That is a jump from the 1.26 billion dollar profit one year ago.

Coke exec nets $22M

The chief executive of Atlanta-based Coca-Cola was granted 21.6 million dollars total compensation in 2007, according to a regulatory filing today. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the 63-year-old Neville Isdell received a salary of over $1,600,000 and a performance-based bonus of more than $6,600,000. He received all other compensation of $800,000 items including using the company air plane, a car and driver, security and bodyguards.

Coca-Cola earnings see sharp increase

The Coca-Cola Company reports robust earnings from its fourth-quarter sales of 2007.

The world’s largest beverage maker says its profits rose nearly 80-percent on the strength of a double-digit increase in sales. The company said the uptick is due to growth of key soft-drink brands, and in its water, sports drink, and orange juice categories.

Atlanta-based Coca-Cola reports earnings of 1.2 billion dollars, or 52-cents a share for the three months ending December 31st. That represents a big jump from a year earlier, when profits reported were 678 million dollars. Company officials say they’ve now had four consecutive quarters of double-digit earnings-per-share growth.

The fourth-quarter earnings-per-share reported by Coke were ahead of what analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial were expecting.

Coke to slash jobs

Coca-Cola plans to cut up to 125 jobs by year's end. All the jobs will be in North America. The Atlanta-based company says it’s part of a reorganization designed to spur growth and boost profits. Coke says employees who lose their jobs will be offered severance packages.

Also today Coke announced plans to help build a $45 million plastics recycling plant in South Carolina. The company will also expand other initiatives as part of a new goal to have every bottle it sells in the United States recycled or reused.

More of the ‘Real Thing’ is moving to Georgia

Coca-Cola is closing a veteran bottling plant in Alabama, and moving it’s workers to a nearby Georgia facility.

Atlanta-based Coke says the Opelika plant is set to close October first, after producing the “Real Thing” for almost 70-years. The 43 employees will travel 18-miles to West Point, and join 43 other workers at an existing plant there.

A Coke spokesman says the consolidation into a larger hub allows the bottler to serve more customers. The West Point plant has been operating since the 1970’s.

The move brings yet another business expansion to the burgeoning West Point area, where carmaker Kia is set to open an auto production plant by 2009.

Coca-Cola plant in west Georgia to expand

A decades-old Coca-Cola bottling plant in Alabama is set to close and move its employees to an existing plant in West Point-Georgia, just south of La Grange.

The Opelika plant has been operational in Alabama for almost 70 years. Its 43 employees will join 43 employees working in West Point to create a bigger hub to better serve Coke customers. West Point's plant is about an 18-mile drive from the Opelika facility.

Coca-Cola's new hire serves new role

The Coca-Cola Company has tapped a former insurance company executive as its new chief marketing officer.

Joseph Tripodi had been the senior vice president and chief marketing officer for Allstate Insurance Company.

He will lead a new function at Coca-Cola: combining the company's global marketing and commercial organizations.

The company's top marketing post had been vacant since January.

Coke in, Pepsi out at NASCAR

Atlanta-based Coca Cola Company has inked a ten year deal that gives the company, near exclusive distribution and marketing rights to what some describe as the nation's fastest growing spectator sports ... NASCAR. The agreement with International Speedway Corp. ("ISC"), adds an additional ten races to Coke's roster. That brings to 17 the number of tracks where Coke will have exclusive marketing and distribution rights beginning in 2008. The deal nearly drives Coke's chief rival, Pepsi, out of the lucrative NASCAR market. Included in the deal, the Daytona 500, which Pepsi has sponsored for nearly all of its 49 year history. Susan Stribling is with Coca Cola and says the company is revving up for 2008, when Coke debuts at the Daytona 500. "We’ve had almost a 40 year relationship with NASCAR in some form, with cars that we’ve sponsored, tracks and that sort of thing, but to see it expand even further, just makes everybody down here really excited." Although International Speedway Corp. won't confirm exact numbers, in 2004 the company estimates its mostly male fan base at around 75 million. Stock in Pepsi Corporation was slightly down Monday on trading volume of nearly 3-million shares.

Coca Cola expands NASCAR sponsorship

A NASCAR sponsorship deal is set to be announced that gives Coca-Cola exclusive pouring and marketing rights at Daytona International Speedway and nine other tracks nationwide. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution says that deal will be announced later today.

Pepsi currently serves the 10 tracks in this deal, and has been at Daytona’s track for 49 years. The event just this Saturday night, the ‘Pepsi 400’, will be renamed with a Coke brand for 2008. By the year 2011, Atlanta-based Coke is expected to have rights at all but five tracks on the current NASCAR top racing circuit.

Another sentence in Coke trade secrets case

An ex-con who conspired to steal and sell Coca-Cola trade secrets has been sentenced to two years in federal prison. Today a federal judge in Atlanta gave Edmund Duhaney a shorter sentence than expected. The judge said it was because Duhaney pleaded guilty and helped the government convict a former Coca-Cola secretary who played a key role in the scheme. Joya Williams is appealing her 8-year sentence.

Coke can't find Rockwell paintings

The Coca-Cola Company is searching for missing Norman Rockwell oil paintings.

The paintings were among six works depicting children that Rockwell did for Atlanta-based Coca-Cola's advertising campaigns of the late 1920s and early 1930s. The paintings are described by Coca-Cola's archivist as "seminal pieces" of the company's history.

The archivist says that in the era when a bottle of Coca-Cola only cost a nickel, Rockwell likely was paid at least two-thousand dollars a painting. Each could be worth more than 500-thousand dollars if sold at auction.

Coca-Cola announces 4.1 billion deal

Coca-Cola announced this morning that it has agreed to buy vitamin water maker Glaceau —the deal is worth 4.1 billion dollars. Atlanta-based Coke is the world's largest beverage maker. Company officials say it allows Coke to bolster its' line of active lifestyle drinks. Glaceau makes beverages including vitaminwater and fruitwater.

Former Coke secretary gets 8 years

A former Coca-Cola secretary has been sentenced to eight years in federal prison for
conspiring to steal and sell trade secrets.

In her sentencing hearing, Joya Williams was tearful when she apologized to federal judge Owen Forrester. It was the first time she had admitted her guilt.

The 42-year-old Williams was convicted on February 2nd on a single conspiracy charge. Williams tried to sell classified information about a product from Atlanta-based Coke to rival Pepsi for 1.5 million dollars. She worked with two men who have pleaded guilty in the scheme. One of those other defendants, Ibrahim Dimson, received five years in prison today.

Judge Forrester said such an offense cannot be tolerated in society. His eight-year sentence for Williams was higher than what had been recommended by federal prosecutors. They suggested no more than six-and-a-half years.

Coke settles benzene lawsuits

In Georgia business news -- Atlanta-based Coca-Cola has reached a settlement in lawsuits seeking to force soft-drink makers to eliminate ingredients that can form cancer-causing benzene. In settling cases in three states, Coke agreed to offer replacement drinks to anyone who purchased Fanta Pineapple or Vault Zero before September 2006. Coke says it’s also voluntarily decided to reformulate the two beverages. Other soft-drink makers, including Pepsi, remain defendants in related lawsuits.