Bottled Water Sales Are Down

Up until this year, rising numbers of consumers had been buying bottled water under the misunderstanding that it is safer or healthier than tap water.

In fact, according to the Washington Post, bottled water sales “swelled 59 percent to $5.1 billion between 2003 to 2008, making it one of the fastest growing beverages.”

The Power of Marketing Dollars

The rapid rise in bottled water sales is a testament to the power of effective marketing. Bottled water companies spent billions of dollars in advertising trying to convince us that bottled water is safer than tap.

If you’ve read my other articles on this site about bottled water, you know that I am not a fan of bottled water for a number of reasons.

Whether the drop in sales is due to the recession or because of a greater awareness of the environmental impact of bottled water, the good news is that sales are down. And the environmentalists are especially happy.

Environmentalists Are Hopeful for the Progress

Wenonah Hauter, executive director of the Food and Water Watch advocacy group said, “I thought we’d never be able to impact sales of bottled water, and all of a sudden it’s really gained momentum. I think we’re making real progress.”

Progress, indeed. Did you know that bottled water in the U.S. is the leading cause of plastic pollution?

In fact, according to Eric Olsen (NRDC), bottled water “causes 60 million plastic bottles a day to be manufactured, transported, and then disposed of in U.S. landfills.” He says, bottled water is “killing our planet, and for no good reason.”

Bottled Water Is Not Necessarily Healthier than Tap

The “no good reason” means that, for the most part, bottled water in the U.S. is not safer or healthier than tap water. Evaluate for yourself tap water vs bottled water from the health perspective.

Consumers need to know that up to 40 percent of bottled water is just re-processed tap water. In addition, all plastic bottles leach harmful chemicals into the water, especially when stored for long periods of time and/or when exposed to heat and light.

Read the full Washington Post article here . . .


Return from Bottled Water Sales to Tap Water vs Bottled Water

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