The boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaign is one of the major parts of the solidarity actions in support of Palestine. It is a campaign that is Palestinian-led and promotes the boycotts, divestments, and economic sanctions against Israel. It calls for the boycott of all products and companies that support Israel’s occupation, apartheid settlements and war crimes against the Palestinian people and its current genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
One of the major products that have been on the boycott list for a long time are Coca-Cola products. The Coca-Cola company plays a major role in Israel’s occupation. The Central Beverage Company known as Coca-Cola Israel is a private Israeli manufacturer and is the exclusive franchisee of the Coca-Cola Company is Israel. Coca-Cola has a factory in Atarot, which is an illegal Israeli settlement built on stolen Palestinian land. The United Nations has declared all the Israeli settlements as illegal because Palestinian communities were forcibly removed from their lands for the settlements to be built. The settlements have been declared illegal under international law.
By continuing to have a franchise factory in Atarot, Coca-Cola is ignoring international law and profiting from the illegal occupation. Coca-Cola has denied the allegations of supporting and profiting from illegal occupation.
Coca-Cola has been on the boycott for many years but with the intensification of the violence in Gaza and Israel’s genocide against the people of Palestine, thousands around the world have increased their boycott of Coca-Cola and all its associated products.
This has led to an influx of alternatives to Coca-Cola which not only do not support occupation and displacement but also actively support the Palestinian cause and call for the end of oppression for the Palestinian people.
Two of the alternatives which have hit the South African market are Salaam Cola and Palestine Cola.
Palestine Cola is from a Swedish company called Palestine Drinks and was developed by three Palestinian brothers. The brothers, Hussein, Mohammed and Ahmad Hassoun, launched the company because they did not want anti-Palestinian drinks. The company has also promised to donate all profits to Palestinian causes. The can has a distinctive pattern featuring olive branches and a keffiyeh design.
Salaam Cola is produced in Turkey but was launched in the United Kingdom by Aykiz Shah, the founder of Salaam Cola. It was launched in November 2023 with the mission of providing an alternative cola and a cola with ethics. The brand has pledged a percentage of profits to charities supporting Palestine.
Salaam Foundation’s Farm in the City will be stocking both Salaam Cola and Palestine Cola at 92 Xavier Street, Robertsham.
