Report: US allows soft drink sales to Iran
The US government has approved exports of soft drinks to Iran, putting an end to a ban which had been in place since 1990s, an American press report says.
On behalf of the US State Department, Secretary of State John Kerry approved a distribution contract signed in September between ArKay Beverages and Sonateb Parsian Ltd, the Global Trade Magazine said on its website.
The approval document, which came into effect last week, allows for the export and re-exports from the US to Iran of ArKay cola, it said.
“Now ArKay beverages will be accessible to 100 million consumers in Iran (and the region),” said David Angel, Arkay’s vice president of sales, the website reported.
“This benefits everyone. We will export our soft drinks from the US to Iran. This will create more jobs for American workers. This is a win-win situation,” he added.
ArKay Beverages, headquartered in Melbourne, Florida, produces a variety of alcohol-free drinks.
Khoshgovar Beverage is the company that already bottles Coca-Cola in Iran but the company says it has nothing to do with the American bottler.
The two companies have been locked in a legal tussle since 1995 when former president Bill Clinton prohibited US firms from doing business with Iran.
Coca-Cola wants Khoshgovar to stop using its bottles but the Iranian company says it is Coke-free because it no longer gets concentrate from the American producer and is using local sources instead.
The Iranian Coca-Cola, based in Mashhad, is also suing the US company for cutting off shipments of concentrate.
A Pepsi bottler does the same, with a disclaimer on the label that the ingredients are actually Iranian.
On Wednesday, Managing Director Iran Post Company Hossein Mehri said Iranians can now make online shopping from major retailers Amazon and eBay through a delivery channel established by his company.
“From now on, Iranian citizens can directly buy from Amazon and eBay international retail sites (abroad) and receive their goods in Iran,” Mehri said, quoted by the Fars news agency.
Last month, a news agency said a Microsoft Store had opened in Tehran for sales of mobile phones produced by the multinational US technology giant but the claim was dismissed in other reports.
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