10.18.2000 ET

(CSRwire) Coca-Cola China Ltd announced today its commitment to plant one million trees and drill wells for irrigation in the outskirts of Beijing to fight the sand storm that attacks the China capital.

At a tree planting ceremony, Mr. Steve Chan, Chairman of Coca-Cola China Ltd, said this effort is part of the Company’s environmental protection education program in China. The ceremony took place on a sand dune just 75KM away from the city center where Premier Zhu Rongji made his recent inspection.

Premier Zhu has appealed for actions to stop the desert from advancing toward Beijing, Coca-Cola China Ltd is the first international company committed to such a project.

The program is managed by the China Youth Development Foundation, which was responsible for raising money to build more than 4,000 Project Hope schools for underprivileged children in China. The foundation now promotes the planting of trees in the country to fight soil erosion and improve the environment. Their efforts are known as "Green Project Hope".

"The Coca-Cola Company is the first company in China to sponsor the tree planting program and provide wells to support the growth of these trees," said Xu Yongguang, Secretary General of China Youth Development Foundation.

"In the past years, Coca-Cola has already provided nearby RMB 30 million yuan (US$3 million) to build 51 Project Hope schools and libraries and has sponsored hundreds of scholarships through the Coca-Cola China First Generation University Scholarships program. We are glad that we can now work hand-in-hand with China Youth Development Foundation in environmental protection education," said Mr. Chan. He added that the company will also provide assistance for local authorities on environmental protection education, such as water conservation.

The Coca-Cola Company has invested US$1.1 billion in China since 1979. Its wholly owned unit, Coca-Cola China Ltd., and its 24 bottling companies operate as a local company, employing almost 15,000 local staff across the country. Coca-Cola China Ltd. and its bottlers source virtually all its ingredients and packaging materials from inside China, buying approximately US$600 million worth of goods and services from local suppliers each year.