Citizen Coke : the making of Coca-Cola capitalism / Bartow J. Elmore

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Part 1: Citizen Coke comes of age, 1886 to 1950. Tap water: packaging public water for private profit ; Waste tea leaves: recycling caffeine found in other industries' trash ; Sugar: satiating Citizen Cane's sweet appetite; Coca leaf extract: hiding the cocaine-cola connection ; Cocoa waste: synthesizing caffeine in chemical labs -- Part 2: The costs of empire, 1950 to today. Water from abroad: securing access to overseas oases ; Coffee beans: capitalizing on the decaf boom ; Glass, aluminum, plastic: selling curbside recycling to America ; High-fructose corn syrup: storing sweeteners in stomach silos -- Epilogue. Sustaining Coke's future?

" Citizen Coke demostrate[s] a complete lack of understanding about…the Coca-Cola system―past and present." ―Ted Ryan, the Coca-Cola Company By examining “the real thing” ingredient by ingredient, this brilliant history shows how Coke used a strategy of outsourcing and leveraged free public resources, market muscle, and lobbying power to build a global empire on the sale of sugary water. Coke became a giant in a world of abundance but is now embattled in a world of scarcity, its products straining global resources and fueling crises in public health."