Coca-Cola is a popular beverage around the globe, easily recognized by its signature contour bottle and trademark red and white labeling. Although it is one of the most popular soft drinks in the world, some countries have a deep-rooted resentment for the beverage and have even gone so far as to ban it entirely. Countries such as Cuba and North Korea have found it necessary to eradicate Coca-Cola due to both economic and ideological reasons.
For several years before the ban was put into effect, various Cuban groups had been opposing the sale of Coca-Cola in their country. In the late 1950s, Fidel Castro, who was then Cuba’s leader, had already begun to criticize the soft drink as part of a wider campaign against capitalist “colonialism”, vowing to eliminate it from Cuba. This made sense, as the Coca-Cola brand fancies itself a symbol of U.S. capitalism and the American way of life. The country was subjected to harsh US trade imposed by The United States in the wake of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The widespread hostility against the beverage in Cuba, along with citizens boycotting Coca-Cola as a symbol of what they felt were America’s oppressive foreign policies, was the main impetus for the country’s ban on the drink. In Cuba, Coca-Cola and other U.S. products were literally seen as the “products of the enemy,” according to Robert Quirk, author of the book, The Cuba Reader. By banning the product from their country, Cuban citizens believed they were protecting their sovereignty and maintaining a sense of national pride.
In 1999, Cuba finally put the ban into effect completely, with President Fidel Castro formally announcing a national boycott of Coca-Cola and all of its products—one of several boycotts and “campaigns of truth”. The Cuban government officially declared that it would no longer receive or distribute the beverage within its borders and discouraged citizens from buying it. Since then, Cuba and Coca-Cola have been in an unofficial cold war, but US officials have hinted at a potential end of this disagreement if relations between the two countries improve.
Meanwhile, in North Korea, the ban on Coca-Cola was implemented in 2002, with the country’s leader Kim Jong-il making it illegal to buy or own the product. This ban was part of a much larger move to outlaw all capitalist symbols. Coca-Cola, along with McDonald’s and Burger King, was seen as a symbol of America’s capitalistic system, which North Korea rejected as imperialist. Privatization, free markets, and open trade, were some of the ideas that were deemed as “hostile” by the North Korean government.
The government in North Korea feared that these US products might undermine their nation’s own economy and political system, so they chose to protect their nation’s independence by boycotting it. North Korean scholars believe the ban was a very smart decision and a way for the leader to consolidate power.
Since the ban, some North Korean citizens will try to smuggle Coca-Cola from China as well as from South Korea, though there are bottle-less coca-cola flavored drinks called ‘Cookai’ available for North Korean citizens. It is likely that if the current tensions between the United States, South Korea and North Korea lessen, the ban on Coca-Cola could be reexamined by the communist nation.
Consequences of the ban on Coca-Cola
The ban on Coca-Cola has had an immediate effect on both Cuba and North Korea’s economies. According to Conviser, an economist at the University of Pennsylvania, the boycotting of Coca-Cola has caused economic harms to both countries.
The main effect of the ban on both countries are wages and employment. In Cuba, wages fell 7.5%, prices rose by 20%, and employment decreased by 1.2%. While in North Korea, wages and employment were hit the most. There were 10.2% decrease in wages, 3.8% decline in prices and 7.3% lost of employment.
The ban of Coca-Cola caused the customer’s confidence to decline and people were less willing to buy other products which highly affects the industry. A lot of people lost their jobs because of this movement, causing an uncertainty and lack of security in the mentioned countries. The aging population in both of the countries, Cuba and North Korea, affects further the demand of certain products, because they are not able to contribute to the workforce and buy as much before. Thus, the companies that sell products inside these countries, such as Coca-Cola, don’t make as much profit as before and are unable to keep up with hire and wages.
The global economic crisis and low oil prices also have an effect on the industry and are making the life of citizens of Cuba and North Korea even harder. They have to cut down on certain expenses, like going out and buying a pack of Coca-Cola or beer, because they have to be focused on more on groceries and other bills.
Advantages of banning Coca-Cola
The ban of Coca-Cola has not only brought economic consequences to these countries, but it has also has some positive effects on their health.
Recent studies show that obesity and diabetes have been decreased in Cuba since the ban of Coca-Cola and other sugary drinks has been put into effect. According to a study conducted by the Cuban Center for Science in Health, the percentage of obesity has steadily declined over a decade, from 41.4 per cent to 37.7 per cent between 2001 and 2010.
In North Korea, it is suggested that citizens are drinking less sugary drinks as well and due to this they have also seen a decrease in diabetes and obesity. This is because beverage companies like Pepsi or Coca-Cola also have healthier options, such as sugar free drinks.
Healthier options are not only healthier for citizens, but they also have some environmental advantages. By avoiding sugary drinks, people can reduce their single-use plastic waste, which has been a major issue in both of the countries.
Lastly, banning Coca-Cola has also allowed both countries to reinvest the money previously spent on the beverage into other products that help promote the local economy and benefit citizens more, such as food production, education and healthcare.
International Reactions
The bans of Coca-Cola in Cuba and North Korea have put these countries in the spotlight, with many other nations showing interest in their policies.
Some countries have seen the ban of Coca-Cola as a way to protect their citizens and have followed along with the movement. For example, in 2005, Iran imposed a ban on Coca-Cola along with more than 4,000 other “indecent goods” in order to support its Islamic morality policies.
On the other hand, the ban of Coca-Cola has been a concern for some other countries and organizations. High level officials from the Cuban government have been invited to conferences and summits in the United States and Europe to discuss the effects of the ban on the global economy and the rights of the citizens.
Also, international organizations, such as the United Nations, have also raised their concerns about the ban of Coca-Cola. They have called for the governments of Cuba and North Korea to implement systems to monitor their citizens and protect their right to buy and acquire goods according to their preferences and needs.
Reflections on the topic
The bans on Coca-Cola in Cuba and North Korea highlight the complex issues associated with economic and social protectionism. The bans on the soft drink were both ideologically motivated to reinforce a sense of national pride, while also helping to economically secure the countries by reinvesting the money saved from not buying and selling Coca-Cola elsewhere.
These bans can be viewed as a symbol of the failures of US foreign policies and how the US government’s actions can have an adverse effect on foreign nations, independent of whether it is intentional or not. The bans can also be seen as a sensible way for the countries to protect themselves and their citizens in an ever changing global economy.
However, what remains unclear is why other countries who share similar views with Cuba and North Korea about US imperialism and global capitalism have not followed a similar approach. For example, many Latin American countries have been subject to US imperial policies, yet none have followed suit with the Coca-Cola ban.
This could be due to the fact that these countries are more reliant on US trade, whereas Cuba and North Korea can absorb the costs associated with the ban more easily due to their smaller size, thus making the decision all the more admirable.
Consensus between Cuba and North Korea
Since both Cuba and North Korea have banned Coca-Cola, many have questioned whether or not these two countries are allies. While the two countries are not known to be official allies and do not have any diplomatic relations, they seem to share a certain degree of consensus when it comes to certain issues. They both have a strong anti-US stance, something that was highlighted when Cuba and North Korea agreed to the UN Human Rights Resolution on US embargo in 2010.
Furthermore, both countries are known for their hostility towards western media and largely avoid it. The Cuban government has also implemented measures to censor foreign television programs, restricting the access of many to foreign TV channels such as BBC and CNN. North Korea too, is notorious for its strict control of media and public access to information and allows access to only a very few number of foreign channels.
The fact that both countries, despite their differences, have agreed upon the Coca-Cola ban and continue to uphold the policy poses interesting questions. Could it be possible that the two countries have come to an agreement on the specific issue, or is it just sheer coincidence that they have decided to do the same? Could it be an indication of a larger unification process underway?
Possibility of reunification
Given the current climate in the Korean peninsula, the idea of reunification has been gaining traction in both North and South Korea. This may be a result of a policy of rapprochement between the two countries, which began with the signing of the Korean War armistice in 1953. North Korea has declared an end to the Korean War and a willingness to establish relations on an equal footing with countries like the United States and even South Korea, indicating a potential for reunification.
The Coca-Cola ban agreement between North Korea and Cuba is yet another example of the potential for the two countries to come together. Although the two countries do not share an official diplomatic relationship, the similar actions of the two countries might reflect a level of understanding between them. Moreover, North Korea’s relations with South Korea and the US have already improved to a certain degree in recent years, suggesting that reunification could eventually be a possibility in the future.
It is too soon to tell whether or not a true unification between the two countries would take place. Yet, it is undeniable that the ban on Coca-Cola in the two nations could point to a similar regional attitude and a potential for a reunification in the distant future.
