Sodastream Attempts A Re-Brand, Focusing On Coexistence
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Back in the intemperate days of 2014, swearing your allegiance to or against DIY sparkling water company Sodastream was an excellent litmus test designed to measure where you stood when it came to the challenges of Israel and Palestinian co-existence.
74 Palestinians were fired when the company closed their West Bank plant due to global pressure, then re-hired when the Israeli government agreed under duress to reinstate their work permits. Mayim Bialik shilled for them, touting the environmental benefits of not wasting plastic when creating your own sparkling water at home. And when actress Scarlett Johansson joined the party (guiltlessly!), there was an international uproar. It was a full “storm in a soda cup.”
But several years later, things are a little more low-key down at the Sodastream factory.
Their beverages are now manufactured with a label that reads “This product is produced by Jews and Arabs working side-by-side in peace and harmony.” The world (by which I mean the basement dwellers of Reddit, where this photo came to light) are skeptical about capitalism promoting ethical coexistence, but it certainly is an interesting business move to counter BDS.
Shira Feder is a writer for the Forward. You can reach her at [email protected]
It’s our birthday and we’re still celebrating!
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news.
This week we celebrate 129 years of the Forward. We’re proud of our origins as a Yiddish print publication serving Jewish immigrants. And we’re just as proud of what we’ve become today: A trusted source of Jewish news and opinion, available digitally to anyone in the world without paywalls or subscriptions.
We’ve helped five generations of American Jews make sense of the news and the world around them — and we aren’t slowing down any time soon.
As a nonprofit newsroom, reader donations make it possible for us to do this work. Support independent, agenda-free Jewish journalism and our board will match your gift in honor of our birthday!
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
