Coca-Cola contributes $2.5-M to 'Yolanda' relief efforts

MANILA, Philippines - The Coca-Cola Company said Friday that it is donating US$2.5 million cash and in-kind contributions for the victims of super typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) in the Visayas.

The company said Coca-Cola Philippines is providing US$1 million for community rehabilitation and to assist small and independent customers with reconstruction.

Another US$1 million has also been contributed by the Coca-Cola Foundation in Atlanta to the American National Red Cross.

The company added that by the end of this week, it will have donated 129,000 cases of water to the affected communities, representing an in-kind contribution valued at $590,000.

The company said that Coca-Cola Philippines and its bottling partner, Coca-Cola FEMSA Philippines, through The Coca-Cola Foundation Philippines, began donating water for relief efforts immediately after the typhoon swept across a large part of Visayas and parts of Luzon.

“We would like to express our deepest sympathies to those affected by this tragic disaster in the Philippines,” said Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO, The Coca-Cola Company. “Our dedicated associates are on the ground offering assistance, and we are committed to helping the communities rebuild.”

Coca-Cola Philippines has been a long-standing partner of the Red Cross Philippines in its programs for disaster relief, blood donation, and basic life support training.

Globally, The Coca-Cola Company and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) also have a partnership to enhance their collaboration on disaster preparedness and response in 50 countries around the world. The Company and its bottling partners have worked with Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies regularly since 1917.