Zero Coca Cola 2

Fit and Healthy in Birmingham Parks
Birmingham City Council Public Health department is concerned about the low levels of fitness and high incidence of obesity and diabetes amongst its residents. There are abnormally high numbers of children with these issues in our city. “24.4% of Birmingham children are overweight or obese when they start school and this rises to 40.0% by the time they leave primary school.” [http://www.birminghampublichealth.co.uk/documents/FINAL_Childhood_Obesity_Report%5B1%5D_1.pdf]
To combat these issues, the department collaborated with a sole funding provider to form Park Lives, a funded scheme which enables parks groups like ours to provide health and fitness activities in Birmingham’s parks, at no cost to the participants.
The funding has come entirely from Coca Cola and promotes their new fizzy drink called Coke Zero because it contains no colour and no calories. Park Lives posters, equipment and session leaders’ clothing all bear clear affiliation to the Coca Cola brand.

However, sugary drinks contribute significantly to the nation’s obesity and the rising incidence of diabetes. Experts suggest that a healthy diet must include a serious reduction in sugar intake. Prof Philip James, a nutrition expert at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and past president of the World Obesity Federation, states that one 330ml can of fizzy pop would take a typical adult up to the proposed 5% daily allowance, without factoring in sugar from any other source. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-29212780]. Moreover, he points out that sugar is now recognised as the only cause of tooth decay.

Research on non-nutrient sweeteners is equally alarming. Non-nutrient sweeteners include saccharin and aspartame, as found in “diet” drinks including Coca Cola Zero and many other products marketed as sugar-free. According to Dr Mercola who is a proponent of alternative medicine, they cause more weight gain than sugars do. They do this by stimulating the appetite, increasing carbohydrate cravings, and stimulating fat storage. [http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/12/04/saccharin-aspartame-dangers.aspx]

Can we really be persuaded that a manufacturer of sugary, sweet-tasting drinks is concerned about our health, and weight loss?

Zero Coca Cola
Highbury Orchard Community is concerned with health and well-being, as well as education. Our projects encourage people to engage with nature in simple and direct ways – growing, harvesting, preparing and eating wholesome food - as well as enjoying nature in playful ways. We want to be completely genuine about connecting people to natural sources of nourishment for the body, mind and soul. And we want our messages to be free of any kind of mixed motives. The directors of Highbury Orchard Community took a long hard look at the Park Lives scheme, and they made the majority-decision to say no thanks to funding linked to Coca Cola.

Of course, each organisation must make its own decision about this. Some of our good friends and colleagues working in Birmingham parks have chosen to work under the Park Lives scheme, and we wish them well.

Our Zero Coca Cola position means we must rely on local community funds a bit more. So we are calling upon friends and supporters to help us keep running our projects.

Here’s a few suggestions about how you could help:

• Help us promote our sessions and events. For example, through your connections with friends and colleague, or by putting up posters in the neighbourhood (we would coordinate where they go.)
• Keep buying Highbury honey at Kings Heath Farmers Market
• Attend our events and make a donation to costs
• Help us fill all the places in our Woodland Play sessions and tell your friends about them.
• Sponsor a tree for a year (£10), ensuring each tree will be fed compost, mulched, pruned and harvested according to the seasons.
• Run a fund-raising event on our behalf, perhaps in your front garden, school or church hall.
• Local businesses may wish to offer us sponsorship. For example,
  • £100 provides a half day session working with vulnerable adults.
  • £200 provides for half a term of the new Woodland Play after school club.
  • £500 provides administrative support the company for 3 months.

More details about some of these options will be available soon.

We do thank Kings Heath Business Association for a small grant received from them in 2013, and again in 2014 for our Forest Education project.

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