|
Coca-Cola Obesity Lawsuit; 'I don't want to sue them. I have no choice.' A diet book author who lost more than 100 pounds when her marriage fell apart is behind the first obesity-related lawsuit against Coke. Julia Havey is suing to stop minors from participating in Coke's My Coke Rewards promotion, which allows consumers to accumulate points for prizes by logging codes from bottle tops and fridge packs onto a Web site. In the lawsuit, Havey argues that Coke promotes prizes young people like and that the way to get those prizes is to drink lots of Coke products, which can lead to obesity. … A handful of high-profile attorneys, including Richard Daynard, who made his name suing tobacco companies, threatened last year to sue beverage companies for selling high-calorie soda in schools. Since then, the industry has come out with a voluntary policy that outlaws full-calorie carbonated soft drinks in all schools and greatly restricts sales of other beverages. Daynard said Friday those lawsuits now are on hold. "We are waiting to see if the voluntary agreement is carried out," he said. He and others will discuss such issues at an upcoming annual meeting focusing on obesity-related litigation, he said. Though he said beverage companies are still on the radar, "they are not necessarily in first place." Other possible targets would include food companies, fast-food restaurants and television networks.
For a copy of the complete article, contact CJRG. |