<p>xiggi,</p>
<p>When in London this spring, I almost had a heart attack when I paid one pound ($2.00) for a 16 oz. Coke at a Tesca market.</p>
<p>Many years ago, I was actually prescribed Coca-Cola in response to a severe episode of food poisoning, which actually turned out to be ciguatera. Since then, I’ve become a believer in the curative powers of Coke when traveling. There’s nothing like it for traveler’s tummy… which is why, at a National Park in Tanzania, I didn’t object to paying $2 (American) for one warm can of Coke… seven years ago. (A bottle of the local ginger ale, called Tangawize, sold for about a quarter.)</p>
<p>I heard although I don’t have specific knowledge that Costco in some areas sells Mexican coke.</p>
<p>Dad gave us Coke as children whenever we had a badly upset stomach. Regarding Mexican soda, Jarritos is great. Yes, it’s more expensive but some of the ethic “warehouse supermarkets” in New Jersey ocassion sell their stock of Jarritos products at discount.</p>
<p>
Coke gets blamed for so much of this kind of stuff that is , IMO, overblown. My favorite were the protesters at the annual board meeting complaining that Coke wasn’t doing enough to combat AIDS in Africa.</p>
<p>Galco’s Sodapopstop in Los Angeles sells every conceivable form of soda
including Mexican Coca Cola. They have an internet shop as well.
sodapopstop.com</p>
<p>I agree, Jym. A small subsection of students tried to get Coke products taken off our campus at the University of Chicago last year, and I found many issues brought up to be overblown or simply not proven. After quiet lengthy proceedings, it was decided that Coke products would remain.</p>
<p>Thank you, corranged. The voice of reason. (Watch out, though. This is usually where mini comes in and educates us about all the evil things the big companies like Coke are doing to the environment in India. 
)</p>
<p>“Coke gets blamed for so much of this kind of stuff that is , IMO, overblown”</p>
<p>Whether the stories about Coke’s “sins” are overblown or not, the anti-Coke campaign is real and spreading fast at schools around the world (try Googling “anti-Coke” or “Killer Coke.”) If I were a Coke exec I would be more than a little worried about the future of the company. And then there’s the campaign against sweetened soft drinks because of runaway obesity, and the campaign against bottled water because of environmental waste…Things are not looking rosy for Coke. </p>
<p>Which is not to say I’m going to stop drinking it any time soon. </p>
<p>Maybe they’ll be reduced to bringing back sugar to shore up their baby-boomer customer base… “Coke like it used to be” :)</p>
<p>I’ll stand in for Mini! Read up on the labor relations in Coke plants in Colombia – when the workers tried to unionize the company brought in armed guards and some of those arms were fired. Not to mention the ground water depletion in India.</p>
<p>Just read today that diet Coke in Mexico now uses cyclamates (remember them?) as a sweetner.</p>
<p>Disclaimer – I like diet Coke. A lot. But I don’t pretend that they are good corporate citizens of the world</p>
<p>Well this year I had the, uhm, pleasure, of watching presentations by Coke and “Killer Coke” at a “town meeting” at my school. The people doing the Coke presentation were nothing special (though they came to our school for free and had some technology issues while setting up), but the man in charge of Killer Coke–a for profit company, by the way, and someone we had to pay him to come–was frankly offensive and condescending. If the head of the largest organization against Coke is so thoroughly unimpressive, then it really makes me doubt the issues as a whole. My standards aren’t all that high: the head of any political/issue-based organization should be able to make me believe or at least seriously consider their points. (Hell, I work for a political based non-profit, and I at times question my position after reading something by the other side!)</p>
<p>Thanks for the insight into Killer Coke, Corranged. Part of me – the part addicted to Coke – wants the Killer Coke people to be full of ****, while the cynical part of me expects that at least some of the dirt about Coke out there is true.</p>
<p>I have one kid at Smith (which is one of the most recently de-Coked campuses) and another headed to U. Chicago, which, as you note, resisted the anti-Coke campaign. Neither of my kids drinks Coke, but both of their parents start looking a little wild-eyed and desperate when there is no Coke available. I’m glad to hear that we will at least be able to get our fix when we drop off S in a couple of weeks!</p>
<p>Water may wipe out Coca-Cola but the company will survive. An awful lot of bottled water carries the Coke brand.</p>
<p>I like coke. Just wanted to be apart of the discussion :)</p>
<p>The magic ingredient in the real old-style Coke…was Coke(aine)</p>
<p>One of the winners at last year’s Middle School science fair here showed teeth (donated by a dentist) and what they looked like after steeping in Coke for varying lengths of time. What an eye-opener! I’d definitely drink it through a straw, though I will stick to my Diet Coke, thanks.</p>
<p>I wish I was allowed to talk about some of the “in’s and out’s” of the Coca Cola Company, as a family member is a longtime employee, but… sorry, no can do.</p>
<p>Just inject it IV, Rachacha.</p>
<p>D spent time in Atlanta this summer and said that the Coke Museum was surprisingly interesting. Her favorite part was portion of the Museum dedicated to the different cokes in the different countries. Coke will change the flavor to cater to local tastes. She said that some of the other cokes were surprisingly good.</p>
<p>The World of Coke “German” versions taste absolutely nothing like the Coke products sold in Germany. Those are the only ones I have personal experience with, so I can’t judge the others. I like the exhibit, too, but was disappointed that I couldn’t show my friends what Mezzomix really tasted like. (Coke with orange.)</p>
<p>We did a family “Coke products blind taste test” a few years ago. I correctly idenfied all 8 products. Don’t know whether to be proud or embarassed!</p>