Greenpeace Australia parodies ‘Coke Rewards’ site to boost cash for containers campaign
Greenpeace Australia Pacific has launched a new website www.cokerefunds.org parodying www.cokerewards.com.au that highlights Coca-Cola Amatil’s muscular campaign to prevent the national roll out of a cash for containers scheme that has been so successful in South Australia for more than three decades.
Says Seb Cumberbirch, digital strategy manager for Greenpeace Australia Pacific: “Coke’s opposition to a beverage recycling scheme is dodgy. This is reflected in an impossible-to-click ‘Refund my 10c’ dodge button which like Coke’s support for recycling can’t be pinned down.
“The campaign allows our supporters to imagine a time when Coke is not only supportive of a national cash for containers scheme, but even provides a 10 cent online refund.
“The website continues Greenpeace’s fine tradition of aping big corporation’s marketing campaigns to shine attention on corporate policy wrongdoing, embodied by Greenpeace’s take on Shell’s campaign to drill for oil and gas in the Arctic.
“We have played with the company’s Coke Rewards customer loyalty marketing program, subverting this marketing tool to make fun of the company’s dogged resistance to a scheme which a recent Newspoll shows 84 per cent of Australians want and that has been successful in South Australia for over three decades.”
Coca-Cola Amatil – hand in hand with the Australian Food and Grocery Council and big beverage companies like Lion Nathan and Schweppes – are currently fighting the expansion of cash for containers.
Beverage companies took successful court action in March against the NT government’s scheme and the company’s influence was behind commercial TV stations banning Greenpeace’s controversial ad lampooning Coca-Cola’s opposition to effective recycling (since viewed on Youtube more than 1.3 million times). An ad campaign (left) featuring plus size model Laura Wells has since been rolled out nationally.
Says Reece Turner, Greenpeace campaigner: “To date, our campaign to win a beverage recycling scheme has been serious and quite confrontational, reflected in our banned TV advertisement showing dead birds falling from the sky having choked to death on plastic waste.
“This change of tack employs cheeky humour to belittle Coke’s stiff opposition to a cash for containers scheme. On facebook our supporters are enjoying the site and sharing the joke.”
Greenpeace’s site enables consumers to email Coke CEO Terry Davis to request Coke back a container recycling scheme.
2 Comments
I’m sure Ogilvy will do something ‘amazing’ to counter this,
Love it. While Coke is mounting a legal challenge against implementation of the deposit scheme in the NT they mouth platitudes about caring for the world by recycling. Talk is cheap I guess.