DID YOU know the meaning behind this advertising slogan back in 1982 – “Coke is it!”?
For sure, millennials or the Generation Y know it well. It means Coke is the original and ultimate cola that never lets you down.
But 44 years later, it seems Coca-Cola is no longer living up to such a playful slogan. It is now in the middle of a rather intriguing brouhaha.
The decision of Coca-Cola Europacific Aboitiz Philippines (CCEAP) to import finished products from Indonesia since the latter part of 2025 has literally irked sugar industry stakeholders — planters and workers alike — in the Philippines. To them, it is as if CCEAP is disrespecting the entire sugar industry.
Importing finished products under the guise of augmenting local supply signals that CCEAP may be indirectly bidding goodbye to locally produced sugar.
CCEAP, according to records from the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), consumes around 45,000 metric tons (MT) of locally produced premium refined sugar a month. Industry estimates put the value of such monthly consumption at P3.42 billion. CCEAP, therefore, is one of the biggest consumers of premium-grade refined sugar in the country. So, just imagine the potential loss.
NO KNOWLEDGE?
Most appalling of all, the SRA had no prior knowledge about this Coke brouhaha. Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona admitted to being shocked by media reports that Coca-Cola was already importing finished products. Nonetheless, he expressed hope that such a move would not make a dent in the sugar industry. Oh, really!?
Philippine Sstar reported on September 17 that Coca-Cola had been importing finished products since November last year. During the last two months of 2025, the beverage firm, according to the Bureau of Customs (BOC), imported 5.3 million liters of the 1.5-liter Coke variant.
Yes, there is no prevailing law in the country prohibiting Coca-Cola from importing finished products. So, what is the gist of the current issue?
Simple: Respect!
BYPASS PH SUGAR?
Aboitiz is no ordinary business conglomerate in the country. Known for its many businesses, particularly in the power sector, Aboitiz has built a reputation for valuing its host communities through its corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs. Aboitiz’s track record in dealing with host communities has been admirable — until this recent Coke brouhaha.
Does Aboitiz’s CCEAP now want to bypass Philippine sugar?
I tried contacting CCEAP to get the company’s explanation for its controversial decision to import finished products, but as of this writing, my efforts have been to no avail. Someone from Aboitiz, however, promised that the company may soon issue an official statement.
‘NAIL IN THE COFFIN’
For Aurelio “Boodie” Valderrama, president of the Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations (CONFED), Coca-Cola’s decision to import finished products from its Indonesian counterpart is “a nail in the coffin” for the already struggling Philippine sugar industry.
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the idiomatic expression “a nail in the coffin” describes the final event that causes the total failure of a plan, business or career that was already struggling.
Is Boodie right in using such an idiom?
Since October last year, the sugar industry has been hogging the headlines. The glut, blamed on over-importation under the controversial Sugar Order (SO) No. 8 in September 2025, caused sugar millgate prices to plunge to their lowest levels.
And while sugar industry players were mourning low sugar prices, a red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI) infestation further complicated the situation. RSSI has already damaged 32 percent, or 130,000 hectares, of sugarcane fields on Negros Island. Peste!
CALL FOR A BOYCOTT
Now comes the most serious response yet from sugar industry stakeholders — a call to boycott Coca-Cola products. The Democratic Alliance of Labor Organizations (DALO) floated the idea of a boycott.
DALO president Alan Gozon stressed that Coca-Cola’s decision to import finished products is a “disrespect” to the sugar industry.
So, disrespect begets disrespect?
Gozon said this would not be the first time they have boycotted Coca-Cola products. In 2017, when Coca-Cola bought imported high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) instead of using locally produced sugar for its beverages, the Negros labor sector staged a series of protests and boycotted the company’s products.
National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry of the Philippines – Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (NACUSIP-TUCP) president Roland de la Cruz said that, in a worst-case scenario, they are also ready to support a call to boycott Coca-Cola products.
“If push comes to shove, we are willing to call for one,” de la Cruz said.
‘COULD YOU,’ ‘WOULD YOU’
DALO and NFSW-TUCP, alongside the Sugar Council — composed of three major groups of domestic sugar producers in the country: the Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations (CONFED), National Federation of Sugarcane Planters (NFSP), and Panay Federation of Sugarcane Farmers (PANAYFED) — also issued a joint statement addressed to Aboitiz’s CCEAP. Their appeal is tantamount to saying: “Could you?” or “Would you, please…”
“As Filipino consumers and workers sustain Coca-Cola’s market success, we urge the company to reciprocate by prioritizing our domestic sugar,” read the joint statement.
“Relying on imports directly threatens the livelihoods of our farmers, producers, and labor sector. Ultimately, weakening this massive local workforce will erode the very purchasing power they need to buy Coke products,” the statement added.
POINTS TO PONDER
Does Aboitiz want to bring the sugar industry to the morgue — and eventually to its grave?
Yes, it is undeniable that the sugar industry is in the midst of a “super typhoon” right now. Can’t Aboitiz act as a rescuer instead?
I believe hovering over the industry like another disaster is inappropriate at this moment. I am also sure that Aboitiz would never want to gamble with its credibility and integrity in the eyes of its host communities.
The appeal of the Sugar Council and the boycott call from labor groups resonate across the sugar farms of Negros. Negrenses — rich and poor alike — have a “unique pride.” Never provoke them. A simple reminder: Never push Negrenses against the wall. They can be “deadly” when they fight back.
Negrenses love Coke. Therefore, Coca-Cola must also show some love for the Negrenses. Prioritizing their kalamay — a product born of their blood and sweat — is perhaps the sweetest token of appreciation Aboitiz can show.
However, in a worst-case scenario, Negrenses are not afraid to make a sugar fight. So, Aboitiz must avoid rubbing salt into an already painful wound — or fanning the flames of an industry already under tremendous pressure.
Just a heads-up!/PN
