Oxfam petition spurs Coca-Cola's pledge to fight land-grabbing

Thousands of Kiwis have helped push beverage giant Coca-Cola into changing the way it obtains ingredients from many developing nations.

New Zealanders were among 225,000 people who signed Oxfam petitions urging food and beverage makers to stop using ingredients from suppliers where large-scale land acquisitions and land conflicts were taking place.

Global action against "land-grabbing" was sparked by an Oxfam investigation that found companies were stealing poor communities' land without payment or consultation to build sugar plantations - burning down houses, using force and displacing whole communities in the process.

The company, which obtains sugar from plantations in South America, India, the Philippines, Thailand and South Africa, yesterday committed itself to protect the land rights of those communities.

"The Coca-Cola Company believes land-grabbing is unacceptable.

"Our company does not typically purchase ingredients directly from farms, nor are we owners of sugar farms or plantations, but as a major buyer of sugar we acknowledge our responsibility to take action and to use our influence to help protect the land rights of local communities."

The company announced a new "zero tolerance" approach to the practice, agreed to conduct human rights assessments in its supply chains, disclosed the top three countries and suppliers of its cane sugar; and agreed to work with governments and international bodies to support responsible practices.

Oxfam New Zealand executive director Barry Coates said Kiwis played a role in protecting some of the world's most vulnerable people.

"Thousands of New Zealanders joined more than 200,000 consumers globally in calling on Coca-Cola to take responsibility for the impact of the sugar used in their soft drinks on the most vulnerable people in the world," he said.

"As the largest purchaser of sugar in the world, Coca-Cola has immense power to influence its suppliers and the industry. These steps will improve transparency and accountability in Coca-Cola's supply chain and help push stronger standards in the industry."

The company's actions would continue to be monitored by Oxfam.

PepsiCo and Associated British Foods, which owns Twinings Tea and Tip Top bakeries, were yet to commit to human rights and socially responsible business practices.