Fair enuff points.
The problem is indeed that there are no "norms" as such atleast in India which dictate the "permissible" levels of pesticides in colas. The regulations are so poor that even if countries do something wrong, there is no check on them. Under the law, if there are pesticides in soft drinks, there is nothing wrong because we have no law which mandates the quantity of pesticides in water. We have no law which mandates the quality of water that is used in the manufacture of soft drinks.
However, if we compare against the EEC standards, the pesticides found in the colas in India are 30-40 times the limit. Now assuming that EEC did some amount of research in determining the acceptable standards, by any strech of imagination, 30-40 times is a pretty high number, and is sure to be harmful.
While local water supply could be blamed, is it not the company's responsibility to "test" their raw material ? If the local water supply was laced with arsenic, and a cola was made out of it, and people died, who should be responsible ? The end product is sold by Pepsi/Coke, anything contained in it is their responsiblity. Is it not ?
The companies in question have not yet come out with a response, so we do not know what is happening. Stay tuned, I will keep you informed of the saga.
But the point which I was also trying to make here, is that the lack of regulation in third world countries make it very easy for multinational companies to do whatever they want, without the fear of reprisals.
Meanwhile, another test from the PCB (Pollution Control Board) found this.
Quote:
PCB too finds carcinogens in Coke plant sludge
August 06, 2003 14:46 IST
Last Updated: August 06, 2003 14:51 IST
Confirming reports of carcinogenic heavy metal presence in the waste material thrown up by the Coca-Cola plant at Plachimada in Palakkad district, the Kerala State Pollution Control Board on Wednesday said its sample analysis showed presence of cadmium in much higher concentration than permissible levels.
Releasing the results, PCB chairman Paul Thachil said the sample was found to contain 201.8 mg of cadmium per kg of dry weight, against the tolerable limit of 50 mg.
The factory had been asked to stop supplying the sludge as fertiliser to farmers in the locality and keep it in seepage proof condition, Thachil told a press meet in Thiruvanthapuram.
The presence of lead at 319.0 mg per kg was, however, lower than the tolerable limit of 500 mg per kg, Thachil said.
The samples were tested earlier this week at PCB's Central laboratory at Kochi.
The Hindustan Coca-Cola factory has, of late, been in the eye of a storm, with BBC recently reporting that the sludge thrown up by the plant contained heavy concentration of cadmium and lead.
A local campaign was also on, alleging that the factory caused depletion of ground water in the arid region.
A routine test conducted by PCB in January this year could not detect the presence of heavy metals at hazardous levels in the waste material of the plant, Thachil said.
A detailed inquiry would be held to ascertain how this 'serious deviation' took place within a few months.
He said it was not within the PCB's powers to probe whether the soft drink itself contained hazardous material. It was for the health department to probe this, he said.
The concentration of cadmium at below detection limit of 2 MG per litre and lead at 0.1 mg per litre in the effluent was within the tolerance limit, Thachil said.
"The results indicate that the concentration of cadmium in the sludge is high and hence the sludge may have to be classified as hazardous waste," he said.
The board had asked the company not to use the sludge as manure, even within the plant premises and the company had complied with the instruction, he said.
You seem to be jumping to a lot of conclusions that aren't proven in the story you've quoted here. 
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