WOW who’d of thunk it?
What great news for the corporation. Thanks for clearing that up, Coke!
Oh.. wait now.. something doesn’t seem right..
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Coca-Cola has pumped millions of dollars into the founding of a new nonprofit that claims there is “strong evidence” that lack of exercise is mostly to blame for obesity, not poor diet.
Coke, the leading producer of soda and sugary drinks across the world, has invested heavily in the Global Energy Balance Network, a nonprofit run by a handful of university scientists who were offered $4 million by Coke to fund various research projects, according to the New York Times.
Halting weight gain should be less about dieting and more about “maintaining an active lifestyle and eating more calories,” the group said on its website. The group’s proof of this claim comes down to two research papers, both of which end with the same footnote: “The publication of this article was supported by The Coca-Cola Company.”
Others went further, suggesting GEBN is part of a deceptive mission to further Coke’s corporate agenda around the world.
READ MORE:Coca-Cola employees protest ‘humiliating’ company policies in Spain
“The Global Energy Balance Network is nothing but a front group for Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola’s agenda here is very clear: Get these researchers to confuse the science and deflect attention from dietary intake.” said Marion Nestle, author of the book “Soda Politics” and a professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University.
James O. Hill is GEBN’s president and a professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Last year, Coke gave an “unrestricted monetary gift” of $1 million to the University of Colorado Foundation. He said Coke has no say in the organization’s output or message.
“They’re not running the show,” he told NYT. “We’re running the show.”
NYT reported that it is unclear if any of the around $4 million in research funding Coke gave to Blair and Dr. Gregory A. Hand, dean of the West Virginia University School of Public Health, ended up as personal income.
“As long as everybody is disclosing their potential conflicts and they’re being managed appropriately, that’s the best that you can do,” said Hand, a founding member of the group. “It makes perfect sense that companies would want the best science that they can get.”
Hill defended the group’s mission, saying GEBN has not left diet out of its messaging.
“If we are out there saying it’s all about physical activity and it’s not about food, then we deserve criticism,” he said. “But I think we haven’t done that.”
Yet the company has often stressed that a sedentary lifestyle is to blame for the obesity crisis.
“The media tends to blame the obesity epidemic on our poor eating habits,” the group said in a recent news release. “But are those french fries really the culprit? Dr. Steve Blair explains that you shouldn’t believe everything you see on TV.”
This piece was reprinted by RINF Alternative News with permission or license.
Via RT.
