Cans of Coke soft drink sit stacked on pallets in a storage area following manufacture at the Coca-Cola Co. factory in Dongen, Netherlands, on Thursday, Aug. 4, 2016. Coca-Cola, the world’s largest soft-drink company, last month posted second-quarter sales that missed analysts’ estimates as falling revenue abroad outweighed modest gains in the U.S. Photographer: Jasper Juinen/Bloomberg
(Bloomberg) Workers at a Coca-Cola factory in southern France opened a shipment of orange juice but found a huge shipment of cocaine instead.
The Coca-Cola factory in the town of Signes, near the Mediterranean coast, produces concentrates for various drinks. A spokesman for Coca-Cola France says employees immediately notified police and judicial authorities have opened an investigation.
Sacks containing 370 kilograms (815 pounds) of cocaine were hidden in a shipping container holding orange juice from Costa Rica, the spokesman said. The Marseille prosecutor’s office said Wednesday it opened an investigation into trafficking and importing illegal drugs.
Coca leaves were reportedly used in the original Coca-Cola drink in the 19th century, although the company says cocaine has never been an “added ingredient.”
©2016 Bloomberg News
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