An image of two Coca-Cola bottles is being widely shared on social media linking it with the ongoing farmers’ protests. The text on one of the bottles reads “Kisan Ekta” while on the other it says “Support Farmer”. Several people have posted the image with the claim, “See Bhakto, global Coca Cola has now come out to support the farmers.” (Archive link)
(Viral text in Punjabi: ਲਉ ਵੀ ਭਗਤੋ ਵਰਲਡ ਲੈਬਲ ਕੰਪਨੀ ਕੋਕਾ ਕੋਲਾ ਵੀ ਆਈ ਕਿਸਾਨਾਂ ਦੇ ਹੱਕ ਵਿੱਚ)
One Facebook page “AggBani” posted the viral image gaining over 1,900 shares as of this writing. (Archive link)
ਲਉ ਵੀ ਭਗਤੋ ਵਰਲਡ ਲੈਬਲ ਕੰਪਨੀ ਕੋਕਾ ਕੋਲਾ ਵੀ ਆਈ ਕਿਸਾਨਾਂ ਦੇ ਹੱਕ ਵਿੱਚ।
Posted by AggBani on Thursday, January 14, 2021
The image is massively viral on Facebook with the same caption.
Facebook and Twitter users are also sharing the photograph with the message, “Modi bhakto, global company Coca Cola has extended its support to farmers. Now don’t say that even Coca Cola manufacturers are terrorists.” (Archive link)
ਲਉ ਵੀ ਮੋਦੀ ਭਗਤੋ ਵਰਲਡ ਲੈਬਲ ਕੰਪਨੀ ਕੋਕਾ ਕੋਲਾ ਵੀ ਆਈ ਕਿਸਾਨਾਂ ਦੇ ਹੱਕ ਵਿੱਚ।ਹੁਣ ਇਹ ਨਾ ਆਖਿਓ ਕਿ ਕੋਕਾ ਕੋਲਾ ਬਣਾਉਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਵੀ ਅੱਤਵਾਦੀ ਨੇ।ਨਹੀਂ ਤਾਂ ਫੇਰ ਥੋਨੂੰ ਗਊ ਮੂਤ ਪੀਣਾ ਪੈਣਾ ਬੱਤੇ ਦੀ ਥਾਂ
#RepealFarmsActsTodaypic.twitter.com/mSd0UvLaxL
— Hardeep Sandhu (@Hardeep30951276) January 15, 2021
Morphed image
We were unable to find any other pictures of the coke bottles apart from the one viral. It is improbable that the global company’s support for the farmers’ protest in India would not be reported in the media. Furthermore, the protests are also against large corporates which makes it unlikely for Coca-Cola to show solidarity.
Alt news reached out to the public relations officer of Coca-Cola India. “We learnt about the social media messages featuring Coca-Cola bottle images currently in circulation. We wish to clarify that The Coca-Cola Company has not launched any such brand campaign. The image in circulation is a gross misrepresentation of our brand and misuse of its identity,” he said.
Upon a closer look, we saw that the label on the bottles in small texts reads, “Share a Coke with”, followed by the texts “Kisan Ekta” and “Support Farmer.” In April 2018, The Coca-Cola Company had launched a campaign ‘Share a Coke‘ in India to encourage consumers to share a bottle of the soft drink with peers and family. The viral image seems to have morphed one of the images of the old campaign.
The Coca-Cola Company has not launched any brand campaign in support of the farmers’ protest. The image shared on social media is morphed.
This post was originally published on Radio Free.
