Why does the message of High Fructose Corn Syrup get so
clouded…..Because companies like Coca Cola want it that way. Big money is in control and the message you
receive will be edited and approved by Coke.
A nonprofit founded to combat obesity says the $1.5 million it
received from Coke has no influence on its work.
But
emails obtained by The Associated Press show the world's largest beverage maker
was instrumental in shaping the Global Energy Balance Network, which is led by
a professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.
Coke helped pick the group's leaders, edited its mission
statement and suggested articles and videos for its website.
In
an email last November, the group's president tells a top Coke executive:
"I want to help your company avoid the image of being a problem in
peoples' lives and back to being a company that brings important and fun things
to them."
Coke
executives had similarly high hopes. A proposal circulated via email at the
company laid out a vision for a group that would "quickly establish itself
as the place the media goes to for comment on any obesity issue." It said
the group would use social media and run a political-style campaign to counter
the "shrill rhetoric" of "public health extremists" who want
to tax or limit foods they deem unhealthy.
When contacted by the AP about the emails, Coca-Cola Co. CEO
Muhtar Kent said in a statement that "it has become clear to us that there
was not a sufficient level of transparency with regard to the company's
involvement with the Global Energy Balance Network."
"Clearly,
we have more work to do to reflect the values of this great company in all that
we do," Kent said.
The
Atlanta-based company told the AP it has accepted the retirement of its chief
health and science officer, Rhona Applebaum, who initially managed the
relationship with the group. It said it will not fill the position as it
overhauls how it goes about its health efforts. It also said it has stopped
working with the Global Energy Balance Network.
It's
just the latest example of Coke working with outside experts to promote
messages that benefit the company.
Coke
has long maintained that the academics and other experts it works with espouse
their own views. But the collaborations can be fraught and blur the lines
between advertisements and genuine advice.
In February, several health and fitness experts paid by the
company wrote online posts with tips on healthy habits. Each suggested a
mini-soda as a snack idea.
One
dietitian wrote five such posts in less than a year.
The
Global Energy Balance Network came under fire in August after The New York Times
reported it was funded by Coke. On Nov. 6, the University of Colorado School of
Medicine said it was returning $1 million from the company because of the
distraction it was creating. The University of South Carolina said it plans to
keep $500,000 it received from Coke because one of its professors is also among
the group's leaders. The school said there was no misuse of funds.
On
its website, the Global Energy Balance Network says it received an
"unrestricted gift" from Coke, but that the company has "no input"
into its activities.
Behind
the scenes, however, Coke executives and the group's leaders held meetings and
conference calls to hash out the group's mission and activities, according to
emails obtained through a public records request. Early on, Applebaum informed
the group's president, James Hill, that those involved would need to be open
about collaboration with private industry.
"That
is non-negotiable," she wrote.
Relatively
minor matters, such as the group's logo, were also covered.
"Color
will not be an issue — except for blue. Hope you can understand why,"
Applebaum.
Coke's
cans are red, while Pepsi's are blue.
"It
seems like another one of these classic cases of money coming from industry
with no strings attached — that's the official message. But it's a very
different kind of story taking place," said Leigh Turner, an associate
professor at the University of Minnesota's Center for Bioethics who studies
academic integrity and conflicts of interest.
The
exchanges weren't strictly limited to discussions about the group, and included
Applebaum expressing approval or disapproval of health articles, and talk of
other work with Coke. In an email to another Coke executive, Hill proposes
research on "energy balance" that would be "very specific to
coke interests."
Coke
has long stressed the idea of "energy balance," or the need to offset
calorie intake with physical activity. It's a basic concept few would disagree
with, but critics say the company uses it to downplay the effects of sugary
drinks by shifting more attention to the need for exercise.
In
an introductory video, one of the Global Energy Balance Network's leaders said
the media focuses on "eating too much, eating too much, eating too much —
blaming fast food, blaming sugary drinks and so on." The video has since
been taken down, and the group said the idea that it only focuses on physical
activity is inaccurate.
Hill
declined a request for a phone interview, but said in an email that the group's
strategy benefits "all who are concerned about obesity." He said Coke
provided input into the group's "organizational structure," but that
it was understood the company would be "hands off."
The
group wants to continue its work, he said.
Since
2010, Coke said it gave $550,000 to Hill that was unrelated to the group. A big
part of that was research he and others were involved with, but the figure also
covers travel expenses and fees for speaking engagements and other work. It
does not include money from Coke's overseas divisions or industry groups such
as the American Beverage Association.
