Companies and Brands

Coke Spent $132.8 Million on Health Research

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: March 25, 2016 11:10 am

Last Updated: January 13, 2020 11:32 am

Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) recently bragged that it had spent $132.8 million on health-related research — over a period of six years. At $22 million a year, for a company with revenue of $44.3 billion, it is a drop in the bucket, considering the weight of questions about the health issues surrounding sugary drinks:

We have published updates and amendments to our online, searchable database that clearly outline our support of scientific research, health-related programs and health care professionals from January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2015. We will continue to openly report updates to you every six months to ensure that we are sharing the most accurate and current information available. Here are some items of note:

Our updated total investment in scientific research and partnership activities from January 1, 2010 through December 31, 2015 is $132.8 million.

We are disclosing an additional $15.5 million in grants to support health and well-being partnerships and $490,000 to support scientific research for the disclosure period January 1, 2010 – December 31, 2015. This funding includes support from The Coca-Cola Foundation, Coca-Cola North America and The Coca-Cola Company.
We have removed $1.8 million in incorrect entries and included some entries that date back to 2010-2014. For more information about these updates, please click here.

During this disclosure period, we provided more than $500,000 in grants to organizations in Little Rock, Los Angeles and New York, communities where the beverage industry’s Balance Calories Initiative is focused. This is an initiative to reduce beverage calories per person by 20 percent by 2025. For more information on the Balance Calories Initiative, please click here.

We view this work as foundational to becoming a more helpful and credible partner. We want to – and will – get this right as we work to better serve the communities who have supported us.

A can of Coke costs about $2, depending on where it is purchased. Do the math.