BDS activists came out in droves this weekend in the little suburb if El Cerrito California targeting Bed Bath and Beyond for selling Soda Stream produced on illegal settlements on stolen Palestinian land.
The company, based in Mishor Edomim Industrial Park, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, markets its devices and bottles under a ‘Made in Israel’ label. By doing so, SodaStream (also known as Soda Club), world leader of home beverage carbonating devices, misleads consumers in Europe and the United States.
SodaStream misleadingly markets its devices and bottles under the Made in Israel label while in fact these products were manufactured in the Mishor Edomim Industrial Park, an illegal settlement in the occupied West Bank.
The company has recently faced a ruling by the European Court of Justice, stating that goods produced in settlements should not be considered as made in Israel and enjoys the tax exempt of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
The report was published by Who Profits from the Occupation, a research project of the Coalition of Women for Peace. The project investigates Israeli and international corporate involvement in the Israeli occupation.
Tamara Traubmann, co-author of the report:
The report shows that exploitation and deception are an inevitable part of commercial production in the occupied area. Settlement production benefits from low rent, special tax incentives, and lax enforcement of environmental and labor protection laws. In addition, it many times enjoys preferential trade agreements as if these were products manufactured in Israel.
