Coca-Cola and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) are joining forces in a bold new campaign to help protect the polar bear’s Arctic home. For the first time ever, Coca-Cola is turning its iconic red cans white in celebration of the polar bear and committing up to $3 million to WWF’s polar bear conservation efforts. The Company is also asking fans in the U.S. to join the “Arctic Home” campaign by texting donations.
“Polar bears inspire the imagination. They're massive, powerful, beautiful and they live nowhere else except the Arctic. Their lives are intimately bound up with sea ice, which is now melting at an alarming rate.”
“We want to help the polar bear - a beloved Coca-Cola icon since 1922 - by helping conserve its Arctic habitat,” says Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company. “That’s why we’re using one of our greatest assets - our flagship brand, Coca-Cola - to raise awareness for this important cause. And by partnering with WWF, we can truly make a positive difference for these majestic animals.”
First Ever White Packaging Encourages $1 Text Donation to WWF
This holiday season, more than 1.4 billion white Coke cans will help raise awareness and funds to protect the polar bear’s home. White bottle caps also will be on bottles of Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Sprite, Nestea, Minute Maid and more. Coca-Cola has never before changed the color of the red can to support a cause. The familiar red can background will be replaced with an all-white panorama, highlighted by the iconic Coca-Cola script printed in red. The eye-catching cans will feature the image of a mother bear and her two cubs making their way across the Arctic. White packaging will be on store shelves through February 2012.
Coca-Cola is making an initial donation of $2 million to WWF and inviting others to join the effort. Anyone who wants to help the polar bears can text the package code to 357357 to donate $1 to WWF. They also can donate online at ArcticHome.com, starting November 1. Coca-Cola will match all donations made with a package code by March 15, 2012, up to a total of $1 million.
“Arctic Home” Funds to Support WWF’s Polar Bear Conservation Efforts
Funds raised will go toward WWF’s conservation efforts to protect polar bear habitats - for their survival today and in the future. WWF has a vision to help protect the polar bear’s Arctic home. This includes working with local residents to manage an area high in the Arctic where the summer sea ice will likely persist the longest. This area - potentially covering 500,000 square miles - could provide a home for the polar bear while protecting the cultural and economic needs of local people.
