Peters & Peters

ESG Enforcement Tracker

Charting the rise of criminal and regulatory enforcement

French environmental action group makes complaint against Coco-Cola for greenwashing at 2024 Paris Olympics

Date:
30 November 2024
Relevant legislation/regulation:
French Consumer Code
Jurisdiction:
France
Status:
Ongoing
Regulator/enforcement authority:
Nanterre Public Prosecutor
ESG Category:
Environmental
Defendant(s)/subjects(s):
Coca-Cola Europacific Partners France

Key Facts:

In November 2024, the environmental action group France Nature Environnement (FNE) filed a complaint against Coca-Cola Europacific Partners France in relation to perceived misleading commercial practices arising from Coca-Cola’s involvement in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

In its press release, FNE sets out that Coca-Cola (the longest standing partner of the Olympic Games, with exclusive distribution rights) misled consumers as to the green credentials of the drinks served at the event, with 6 million plastic bottles utilised to meet demand instead of the proposed reusable cups, glass bottles and fountains. This FNE claim, might mean Coca-Cola has failed in its environmental commitments. FNE has therefore invited the public prosecutor to investigate potential charges of misleading commercial practices under the French Consumer Code, which penalises claims likely to mislead consumers about the environmental impact of a product.

Sources: 

FNE press release

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