Coke Recalls Dasani Water in Britain

[Guest guest]

Coke Recalls Dasani Water in Britain

Fri Mar 19, 2:37 PM ET

 

By Dan Lalor and Paul Simao

 

LONDON/ATLANTA (Reuters) - Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE:KO - news) on Friday recalled its

Dasani bottled water product in Britain after tests showed the recently launched

drink contained levels of a potentially harmful chemical above legal standards.

 

The world's largest soft drink maker said it expected to complete its voluntary

recall of about 500,000 bottles of Dasani from store shelves in England, Wales,

Scotland and Northern Ireland within 24 hours.

 

Coca-Cola said it began the recall after consulting with Britain's Food

Standards Agency on Thursday, one day after the company's tests confirmed

unexpectedly high levels of bromate in samples of British-produced Dasani.

 

Long-term exposure to bromate, a non-metallic salt, has been linked to a higher

risk of cancer. Britain's food watchdog called Coca-Cola's recall " sensible " and

noted that there was no immediate risk to public health.

 

The government agency, however, said it understood if some consumers did not

drink Dasani purchased before the recall.

 

Coca-Cola's European spokesman John Chandler declined to say how much the recall

would cost or when the company planned to reintroduce Dasani in Britain. He

noted that the company knew how to fix the bromate problem in its product.

 

But the recall, which comes five years after Coca-Cola was embarrassed by a

product contamination scare in France and Belgium, could prove a serious blow to

the company's efforts to win over British water drinkers.

 

Coca-Cola, which launched Dasani in Britain in January, was recently criticized

after disclosing that the British version of Dasani was in fact treated and

purified tap water -- a practice not uncommon in the bottled-water industry.

 

COKE'S BIG HOPES FOR EUROPE

 

Coca-Cola, whose global water empire includes more than 20 brands in more than

100 markets, had hoped the 2004 launch of Dasani in Britain and France would

allow it to better challenge the dominance of Europe's bottled water giants,

Nestle (NESN.VX) and Group Danone.

 

Analysts said the recall could deflate some of those hopes.

 

" This could damage Coke's ability to relaunch Dasani in the U.K. as Nestle and

other players will likely take the opportunity to remind consumers that they are

selling spring water vs. the purified 'tap' water Coke is selling... " Morgan

Stanley's Bill Pecoriello said in a research note on Friday.

 

Shares of Coca-Cola fell 14 cents to $48.90 in early afternoon trading on Friday

on the New York Stock Exchange (news - web sites).

 

Coca-Cola's Chandler said the recall had no bearing on Dasani products in other

markets, including the United States, the soft drink giant's largest and most

important market. Dasani is the second most popular bottled water in the U.S.

market after PepsiCo. Inc.'s (NYSE:PEP - news) Aquafina.

 

The U.S. version of Dasani does not contain the calcium chloride that triggered

the problem in Britain. Coca-Cola adds calcium chloride, a derivative of

bromide, into Dasani in Britain to meet laws requiring calcium in all bottled

waters.

 

The company said the problems in Britain occurred when the amount of bromide in

the water used to manufacture Dasani led to the formation of unacceptable levels

of bromate during the ozonization process.

 

Ozonization is a popular process in the bottled water industry because the ozone

gas bubbled through the water kills microorganisms, dissipates quickly and

leaves no aftertaste, unlike chlorine treatment.

 

 

 

Chandler said the Dasani samples had tested at within a range of about 10 to 22

parts bromate per billion. British limits for bromate are 10 parts per billion.

European tap water limits are 25 parts per billion. (Additional reporting by

Trevor Datson in New York)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The complete " Whole Body " Health line consists of the " AIM GARDEN TRIO "

Ask About Health Professional Support Series: AIM Barleygreen

 

" Wisdom of the Past, Food of the Future "

 

http://www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/AIM.html

 

PLEASE READ THIS IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER

We have made every effort to ensure that the information included in these pages

is accurate. However, we make no guarantees nor can we assume any responsibility

for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, product, or

process discussed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finance Tax Center - File online. File on time.