Coke Vows to Reduce Water Used in Drink Production

NEW YORK - The Coca-Cola Co. said on Tuesday it will reduce the amount of water used to produce its beverages and put more effort into recycling the water it uses in manufacturing.

Coke, which along with its bottlers used 290 billion litres of water for beverage production last year, said it would make a US$20 million commitment to the World Wildlife Fund.
"Our goal is to replace every drop of water we use in our beverages and their production," Coke chief E. Neville Isdell told the WWF's annual meeting in Beijing.

More than half the water Coke used in 2006 was dedicated to processes like rinsing, cleaning, heating and cooling, rather than going into the drinks themselves.

US: June 6, 2007 REUTERS NEWS SERVICE