Is Soda Pop Sustainable?

"Everybody knows that traditional soda pop has no redeeming nutritional qualities. It contributes to weight gain and diabetes, damages multiple internal organs, and contains harmful chemical ingredients. Diet sodas contain artificial sweeteners that may be as unhealthy as sugar. But let's face it, few people give up their fizzy drinks because of science. Even if we're committed to our empty calories, it doesn't mean we have to harm the planet as well as our bodies or does it?"

"However, bottling plants are not exactly low-impact industries. Beverage manufacturers are often criticized for depleting water supplies in the service of bottled water, but the water used in soda often comes from impoverished, drought-prone areas as well. In India, Coca-Cola has been criticized for contributing to groundwater depletion and repeatedly called out for its water pollution and the offloading of contaminated waste onto local farmers, who use it as fertilizer."

Soda consumption causes weight gain, diabetes, organ damage, and exposes consumers to harmful chemical ingredients; diet sodas use artificial sweeteners that may be equally unhealthy. Soda production is water-intensive: every liter of soda requires 2.7 liters of water, excluding agricultural water for sugar, while some beverages like coffee require far more. Bottling operations can deplete local water supplies and pollute communities, with documented cases of groundwater depletion, water pollution, and contaminated waste used on farms. Some corporations report water-use efficiency gains from process improvements. Sugar accounts for 7–14% of soda's carbon footprint and cane production raises environmental and human-rights concerns.

Read at earth911.com