Coca-Cola Nigeria Misled Consumers on Product Changes – FCCPC

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has concluded a comprehensive investigation into Coca-Cola Nigeria Limited and the Nigerian Bottling Company Limited (NBC), revealing significant transparency and consumer communication breaches.

Initiated in June 2019, the investigation focused on the companies’ switch from traditional sugar to non-nutritive sweeteners in their Coke, Fanta, and Sprite brands. This change was not adequately communicated to consumers, according to the FCCPC.

The FCCPC’s findings, outlined in a statement from the management, indicated repeated violations of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) by Coca-Cola and NBC, particularly concerning misleading trade descriptions and unfair marketing practices.

The investigation revealed that the companies marketed the “Original Taste, Less Sugar” variant as identical to the classic Coca-Cola, despite differences in formulation. Similar undisclosed changes were found in Fanta and Sprite products.

By December 2020, the FCCPC had gathered substantial evidence demonstrating these violations. The commission found that Coca-Cola and NBC had failed to provide clear and accurate information to consumers, intentionally misleading them about the nature of their products. Internal documents showed the companies were aware of the ineffectiveness of their product differentiations yet continued misleading practices.

Initially, Coca-Cola and NBC agreed to adopt more transparent product descriptions to resolve the matter. However, they later abandoned this commitment, choosing a business strategy that did not meet regulatory standards. This led the FCCPC to re-engage with the companies, but efforts remained inadequate despite numerous opportunities to comply.

On July 29, the FCCPC issued a Final Order detailing its findings, highlighting Coca-Cola and NBC’s use of misleading trade descriptions and unfair marketing tactics. The order specifically noted the misleading marketing of Coca-Cola Original Taste and its “Less Sugar” variant, as well as the use of identical packaging for NBC’s Zero Sugar and 50:50 variants of the Limca Lime-Lemon flavoured drink, which further contravened regulatory standards.

The commission has reserved judgement on the issue of Abuse of Dominance and the appropriate penalties under the FCCPA and the Administrative Penalties Regulation 2020, which will be imposed in due course.