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Flemish commercial TV station VTM had run the news story during a prime-time bulletin that 37 schoolchildren had fallen ill after drinking cans of Coke
It was only after the Belgian and French governments insisted that the products were withdrawn that the company finally mobilized the chairman and CEO, Douglas Ivestor, for a visit to Europe to help manage the crisis and bring it to a close.
In March 2000, results of an independent investigation by Belgium’s High Hygiene Council at the government’s request revealed that the vast majority of those people with the symptoms had suffered mass sociogenic illness (MSI), or “mass hysteria”.
"We respect the Ministry’s obligation to the people in these times of deep sensitivity to public health issues. Nothing is more important than protecting the public’s health and we have worked very closely and intensively with the Ministry, providing significant amounts of information confirming complete confidence in the safety of our products and packages. He announced: We let down the people of Belgium, and we’re sorry for that, but now we’re committed to do what it takes to earn their complete trust again"
Signal detention
"The Coca-Cola Company’s highest priority is the quality of our products. For 113 years our success has been based on the trust that consumers have in that quality. That trust is sacred to us. I want to reassure our consumers, customers, and government officials in Europe that The Coca-Cola Company is taking all necessary steps to ensure that all our products meet the highest quality standards. Nothing less is acceptable to us and we will not rest until we ensure that this job is complete. We deeply regret any problems encountered by our European consumers in the past few days"
The head of Sales Coca-Cola visited those in hospital
The next day other schoolchildren and indeed adults, across Flanders, said they were suffering as well