Origins:
The last thirty-odd years have seen allegations of anti-Semitism
hurled at both
Successfully doing business in the Middle East often depended upon not doing business in Israel. The Arab League was quick to boycott, and multinational concerns were forced to choose between the smaller market of Israel and the much larger market of the combined Arab states. For firms caught in the middle, it was a "no win" situation.
Coca-Cola's turn in the harsh spotlight of public opinion came in 1966.
April 1 1966: At a press conference in
In 1949 Coke had attempted to open a bottling plant in Israel but their efforts had been blocked by the Israeli government. As long as no one was questioning the company too closely, the failure of this one-time stab at the Israeli market appeared to provide a satisfactory answer for Coke's conspicuous absence. In the meanwhile, Coca-Cola was content to quietly continue servicing the much larger Arab market, a market it was likely to lose if it began operating in Israel.
In 1961 an incident in Cairo involving civil servant Mohammad Abu Shadi momentarily shattered the quiet. Shadi had come into possession of a Coca-Cola bottle manufactured in Ethopia, mistaken the Amharic lettering on its label for Hebrew, and publicly accused Coca-Cola of doing business with Israel.
The manager of Coca-Cola's Egyptian bottling operations wasted no time (and
little thought) in assuring the press that
It wasn't until 1966 people began to wonder openly why it was nearby Cyprus
had no difficulty supporting its
These various doings coming to light in 1966 proved highly embarrassing to
The Arab League struck back by placing
Pepsi's entry into Israel in 1992 did not go smoothly -- the evolution theme of its "Choice of a New Generation" ad campaign (man was portrayed as evolving from a monkey into a Pepsi drinker) angered the strictly observant haredi community. Though Pepsi pulled the campaign from Israel, it found itself in further hot water over a 1993 Michael Jackson tour. Jackson's unthinking flashbulb-popping arrival on a Sabbath was viewed by many observant Jews as a desecration. For a time Pepsi lost its kashrut (kosher) certificate because it was deemed to be promoting a culture that would corrupt the nation's youth through rock music concerts and advertisements featuring scantily-clad women.
Prior to 1992, Pepsi had backed the other horse, choosing to service the
lucrative
The Anti-Defamation League of the B'nai B'rith investigated claims that Pepsi was participating in the boycott of Israel. U.S. law prohibited American companies from taking part in this boycott, but the law was vague and outright violations were hard to pin down. Nothing ever came of the investigations, and Pepsi was never placed on the American government's list of violators.
Pepsi always denied it was fear of losing their Arab markets that kept them
out of Israel. Like
Whether it was proveable in the eyes of U.S. law or not, many people in the
United States believed Pepsi was going along with the boycott. Those lucrative
Arab markets did not come without a price, and Pepsi paid it in loss of goodwill
in the U.S.A. A significant number of American cola drinkers grew up suspecting
Pepsi of being anti-Israel and so avoided the product. By contrast,
This appearance failed to take into account
Today you can get either Coke or Pepsi in anywhere in the Middle East, and the days of the boycott have faded into memory. Even so, there are still those who observe the stricture of "Coke is for Jews; Pepsi is for Arabs." Old wounds are not necessarily healed wounds.
Barbara "Pepsi challenge" Mikkelson