Investor members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) have outlined shareholder proposals for Coca-Cola’s and Pepsi’s annual general meetings on 1 May, questioning their continued use of non-sugar sweeteners. The resolutions demand that both companies release third-party reports on their efforts to assess and mitigate the potential health harms associated with those. The ICCR highlighted that over the past decade, the use of non-sugar sweeteners in diet and nutrition foods – often marketed as a ‘healthier’ option – has come under increased scrutiny by the public health community. “Conducting the requested assessment would assure shareholders that the companies are taking adequate steps to monitor the emerging science, while mitigating any negative legal, financial, and reputational risks associated with its use of a product that is increasingly shown to not only lack any significant health benefits but to have potential health harms,” said Meg Jones Monteiro, Senior Director of Health Equity and Evaluation at the ICCR. Last week, only 11% of shareholders at Nestlé voted in favour of a ShareAction-coordinated proposal aiming to encourage the company to increase the proportion of healthier products sales, while 88% voted against and 1% abstained. Investors who supported the resolution represented US$1.68 trillion in assets under management, and included Legal and General Investment Management, Candriam, and La Française Asset Management. “While the vote we achieved today may be less than we wanted, the direction of travel is clear,” said Simon Rawson, Deputy Chief Executive of ShareAction. “Investors and consumers are recognising the importance of addressing the business risks and public health impacts of an industry that is heavily reliant on the sales of unhealthy food. Left unaddressed, the public health trends that spurred this resolution will only worsen.”
The public health community has scrutinized the use of non-sugar sweeteners in diet drinks/foods often marketed as ‘healthy’. Shareholders are asking $KO and $PEP to proactively monitor research on the relationship b/w NSS consumption and chronic diseases: https://t.co/Mirifx7wGX
— ICCR (@ICCRonline) April 18, 2024
