On August 5, a report published by India's Center for Science and Environment (CSE) a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) made newspaper headlines across the country. The report indicated that 12 major brands of soft drinks sold in the country's capital New Delhi contained high levels of four pesticides which were known to cause illnesses ranging from cancer to brain damage. This article narrates the sequence of events following the publication of the CSE report.

On August 5, 2003 a report published by India's Center for Science and Environment (CSE) a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) made newspaper headlines across the country. The report said that 12 major brands of soft drinks sold in the country's capital city, New Delhi contained high levels of four pesticides which can cause brain damage to cancer. At the same time, in two such drinks purchased in the US, the pesticide level were found to be well within the norms. The soft drinks that failed the test were Mirinda Lemon, Coca-Cola, Fanta, Mirinda Orange, Pepsi, 7 Up, Limca, Blue Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Thums Up, Diet Pepsi and Sprite. The total pesticide content in PepsiCo brands on an average was 0.0180 milligrams per liter, 36 times the EU limit for pesticides while that in Coca-Cola brands was 0.0150 milligrams per liter, 30 times higher than the EU limit.

The CSE report came only a few months after a similar study reported high levels of pesticides in bottled water. CSE tested three bottles each of 12 different brands of soft drinks for the presence of 32 different pesticides used in India. CSE claimed it had followed standard procedures laid down by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The CSE had used a procedure called Gas Chromatography, which was further supplemented by mass spectrometry, a more superior technique which established the identity of a chemical beyond doubt. But both Pepsi and Coca-Cola expressed doubts about the methods of testing.

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