Coca-Cola Japan Co. announced on May 27, 2005 that it will replace its approximately 980,000 vending machines in Japan with models that do not use hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by 2020. HFCs are CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) substitutes that also have a strong greenhouse effect. The move is part of the company's efforts to help curb global warming. As a preliminary step, by the end of 2005, Coca-Cola Japan will introduce 1,500 HFC-free vending machines that use carbon dioxide as a refrigerant.

The national Coca-Cola System consists of 14 bottling companies and other related firms, and the Coca-Cola Japan program is designed to help accelerate these companies' purchase of HFC-free vending machines to replace existing models. The company plans to realize mass production of economically efficient HFC-free vending machine models by fiscal 2008 so that all new purchases of vending machines in and after 2008 by Coca-Cola System companies will be of HFC-free models.

Although they don't destroy the ozone layer, HFCs are capable of causing a greenhouse effect that is several hundred to over 10,000 times that caused by carbon dioxide. The global warming effect of R-407C (a mixed HFC refrigerant) used in existing vending machines is about 1,500 times as great as carbon dioxide's.

Coca-Cola Japan started testing HFC-free vending machines in 2003, and this new development is drawing attention to the Coca-Cola Group's commitment to curbing global warming.



Posted: 2005/10/14 09:34:28 AM
Japanese version

TAG Chemicals , Global warming , Manufacturing industry