Srinagar: The boycott by consumers of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo is challenging the mighty soda companies who spent hundreds of millions of dollars over decades to built a demand for their drinks in Muslim-majority countries including Egypt and Pakistan.
The local sodas in these countries have gained momentum amid the boycotts targeting the Israeli and American owned brands amid Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinian people in the besieged Gaza strip.
The local brand in Egypt, V7 exported three times as many bottles of its own cola in the Middle East and the wider region than last year with sales of Coke witnessing a drastic drop, Reuters reported.
In the Middle East or West Asia, Pepsi’s growth declined following Israel’s heightened assault on Gaza.
Pakistani corporate executive, Sunbal Hassan dismissed Coke and Pepsi from her wedding menu in Karachi in April.
She didn’t want that her money reached the tax coffers of the United States, Israel’s staunchest ally.
“With the boycott, one can play a part by not contributing to those funds,” Hassan told Reuters.
