This is a very good read that chronicles the history of Coke from its early days as an imitation of a wine called Vin Mariani (a concoction of Bordeaux wine mixed with cocaine) in 1886 to its position as the world’s most valuable brand in 2012.
Citizen Coke trails the path of this renowned brand from start to over a century later filled with anecdotal stories, environmental lessons, marketing moves and sleek capitalist manoeuvres. In all these, the exploitation of the whole to serve the capitalistic tendencies of the singular is lay bare.
It is a book with an obvious message that serves multiple agendas. Ignoring the core message for a bit, the history of how the product has evolved is fascinating, and the anecdotes make for interesting reading on their own.
In a world where climatic changes are bringing depletion of natural resources into sharp focus, the content of this book causes one to reassess if the public resources that go into this product and similar products are worth it and the best use of diminishing resources. Very good read.
3.6/5
