Soda politics at the Sixth Indian language Festival discussed how cola companies use words to lure people. By Ankita Jain
Ever wondered why a product with just water, lot of sugar and some chemicals so popularIJ And what is it that it affects so much to the consumer’s healthIJ Well, the book on the soda industries named Soda Politics-Taking On Big Soda (and Winning) by Marion Nestle, analyses and summarises this issue. It also highlights the use of languages used by soda companies to make the product aspirational for the consumers. It is the first book to focus on the history, politics, nutrition, and health aspects of soda. The author has integrated public health science with historical and cultural research for it. “Sugar is one of the five most addictive products in the food industry as per a new research. And the cola industry is doing nothing, but making people more addictive towards its flavoured sugar drinks”, said Satya Sivaraman, veteran Journalist in a recent conversation on soda politics at sixth Indian language festival held in the capital city.
The industry whose only interest is making billions irrespective of the health consequences it would have on the consumers, have kids as their main target. “Its all about the right words that are being used to sell not just a drink, but a lifestyle. Very little has been written about how we as a society are changing our food culture. The author has done an amazing job bringing into light the food politics going around us and how processed food, including colas, came in and the whole way in which the corporates deliberately used language to say that home cooked food is not good. The book also says about how convincingly the food giants brought in the whole idea of processed food”, said Sunita Narain, Director General of the Centre for Science and Environment. Processed food have altogether created a fashion, an aspiration, a glamour, and that is something one should think about. She further said, “Some companies have been successful in creating a glamour element to this sugar-water products. One bottle of cola is equivalent to a day's quota of sugar. I am not saying that you shouldn't drink this at all. Instead, you should balance it with other intakes.”
The conversation also led towards the failure to regulate these companies, and the need to fight for it. Sunita also aptly pointed towards the food terminologies, abbreviations used in the labelling of products and how these are misleading consumers.
Food critic Sourish Bhattacharya spoke about wrongful use of icons or celebrities to promote these products which are falling in the category of empty calories or junk.
The solution, as suggested by the conversations, was the use of alternatives like taking honey in place of sugar, or juice instead of flavoured sugar. The experts also spoke on the need to create awareness, especially among children, about the ill effects of cola products. When the issue of diet cola was raised in the platform, it was answered beautifully that addiction is addiction and that “its just a replacement of sugar with the amount of caffein”.