Coca-Cola and the Nigerian Bottling Company Ltd (NBC) have been accused of deliberately misleading Nigerian consumers in their marketing of Coca-Cola’s less sugar variant. This allegation comes from the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), which released a report following a comprehensive investigation.
NBC is part of the Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company A.G., a major bottler for The Coca-Cola Company across 29 countries. According to the FCCPC, Coca-Cola and NBC intentionally used misleading labeling for the less sugar variant of Coca-Cola, which could cause consumers to mistakenly believe it was the original taste variant.
The FCCPC claims this practice breaches Section 116 (1) and (2) of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA). The commission noted that numerous complaints have been received regarding this issue and concluded that consumers were indeed misled by the inaccurate representation of the less sugar variant as the original taste.
This misleading practice reportedly began in October 2018 and continues to the present day. The commission also criticized Coca-Cola and NBC for branding the less sugar variant so similarly to the original taste that it could deceive consumers about the product’s actual content.
The FCCPC’s report also highlighted issues with the “zero sugar” variant of the Limca Lime-Lemon flavored drink, which NBC allegedly produced and distributed for at least ten months in misleading packaging. The commission accused NBC of using identical labels for the 50% sugar variant, which it deemed deceptive.
The report states, “The Commission finds that NBC deliberately engaged in this deceit to covertly reintroduce the 50% sugar variant to the market after testing the zero sugar variant.” This, too, is considered a violation of Sections 17(g), 116 (1), and (2) of the FCCPA.
Furthermore, the commission noted that NBC’s use of identical packaging and NAFDAC registration numbers for both variants of the Limca drink misled consumers into believing the products were identical, violating Sections 123 (1) (a), (b), and (c) of the FCCPA, as well as the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control Act (2004) Pre-packaged Food (Labelling) Regulations.
The Coca-Cola Company is responsible for owning, developing, and marketing its brands, while NBC handles the production, distribution, and sale of these beverages.