Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

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Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)
9 Months Ended
Oct. 01, 2021
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Basis of Presentation [Policy Text Block]
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“U.S. GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Rule 10-01 of Regulation S-X. They do not include all information and notes required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. However, except as disclosed herein, there has been no material change in the information disclosed in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included in the Annual Report on Form 10-K of The Coca-Cola Company for the year ended December 31, 2020.
When used in these notes, the terms “The Coca-Cola Company,” “Company,” “we,” “us” and “our” mean The Coca-Cola Company and all entities included in our condensed consolidated financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (including normal recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. Operating results for the three and nine months ended October 1, 2021 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2021. Sales of our nonalcoholic ready-to-drink beverages are somewhat seasonal, with the second and third calendar quarters typically accounting for the highest sales volumes. The volume of sales in the beverage business may be affected by weather conditions.
Each of our quarterly reporting periods, other than the fourth quarter, ends on the Friday closest to the last day of the corresponding quarterly calendar period. The third quarter of 2021 and the third quarter of 2020 ended on October 1, 2021 and September 25, 2020, respectively. Our fourth quarter and our fiscal year end on December 31 regardless of the day of the week on which December 31 falls.
Advertising Cost [Policy Text Block]
Advertising Costs
The Company’s accounting policy related to advertising costs for annual reporting purposes is to expense production costs of print, radio, television and other advertisements as of the first date the advertisements take place. All other marketing expenditures are expensed in the annual period in which the expenditure is incurred.
For quarterly reporting purposes, we allocate our estimated full year marketing expenditures that benefit multiple quarters to each of those quarters. We use the proportion of each quarter’s actual unit case volume to the estimated full year unit case volume as the basis for the allocation. This methodology results in our marketing expenditures being recognized at a standard rate per unit case. At the end of each quarter, we review our estimated full year unit case volume and our estimated full year marketing expenditures that benefit multiple quarters in order to evaluate if a change in estimate is necessary. The impact of any change in the full year estimate is recognized in the quarter in which the change in estimate occurs. Our full year marketing expenditures are not impacted by this interim accounting policy.
Cash and Cash Equivalents, Policy [Policy Text Block]
Cash, Cash Equivalents, Restricted Cash and Restricted Cash Equivalents
We classify time deposits and other investments that are highly liquid and have maturities of three months or less at the date of purchase as cash equivalents or restricted cash equivalents, as applicable. Restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents generally consist of amounts held by our captive insurance companies, which are included in the line item other assets in our consolidated balance sheet. We manage our exposure to counterparty credit risk through specific minimum credit standards, diversification of counterparties, and procedures to monitor our concentrations of credit risk.
The following tables provide a summary of cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents that constitute the total amounts shown in our condensed consolidated statements of cash flows (in millions):
October 1,
2021
December 31,
2020
Cash and cash equivalents $ 11,301  $ 6,795 
Restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents included in other assets1
312  315 
Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents $ 11,613  $ 7,110 
1 Amounts represent restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents in our solvency capital portfolio set aside primarily to cover pension obligations in certain of our European and Canadian pension plans. Refer to Note 4.
September 25,
2020
December 31,
2019
Cash and cash equivalents $ 11,385  $ 6,480 
Restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents included in other assets1
437  257 
Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents $ 11,822  $ 6,737 
1 Amounts represent restricted cash and restricted cash equivalents in our solvency capital portfolio set aside primarily to cover pension obligations in certain of our European and Canadian pension plans. Refer to Note 4.