Bottled water industry mounts campaign to fight eco-backlash

by Jemima Bokaie, Marketing 11-Feb-08, 17:00

LONDON - A nationwide consortium of bottled water brands are joining forces for a campaign in response to the recent eco-backlash against bottled water.

The initiative, which is yet to be named, is being led by the Bottled Water Information Office (BWIO), which was set-up by the British Soft Drinks Association (BSDA) in 2007 to provide information about bottled water and promote its benefits.

The group will launch a marketing campaign later in the year in a bid to promote the health benefits of bottled water and demonstrate what the industry is doing to reduce its environmental impact, such as reducing its carbon footprint through using recycled packaging.

Bottled water has come under fire in recent months due to concerns over its cost and environmental footprint. According to the BWIO, bottled water accounts for 0.03% of the UK's total carbon emissions.

Thames Water and government-funded Consumer Council for Water (CCW) are uniting this month to launch an initiative to encourage catering outlets to serve tap water without people having to ask for it.

The bottled water category accounted for about 20% of the UK's total soft-drinks market by volume in 2006, compared with more than 50% in all other European countries.

Comments

Mark Griffiths - 12/02/2008

The bottled water industry can promote its cause as much as it wants, but it simply cannot compete when the facts are known. Increasingly, consumers can see the environmental and economic sense in buying water filters - you get to drink your own tap water and can save hundreds of pounds per year, without the environmental cost of importing or transporting and the disposal of tons of plastic and glass. In encouraging catering outlets to serve tap water, Thames Water is cannily re-introducing the practice of what we all used to do anyway.

maggie butler - 12/02/2008

1 billion people in the world don't have access to clean water, and yet the West shuns the water we get for free in order to buy the same stuff in bottles - it's one of the biggest cons of the 20th century, and to say it's ironic is an understatement. The fact that bottled water exists at all in Western countries is testimony only to the strength of clever, Emperor's New Clothes marketing, and the ignorance, gullability and over-privelege of the masses. But people are beginning to wake up, and the 'makers' should accept this and turn their attentions to new - better - products rather than try to flog a dead horse.

m howard - 14/02/2008

Agreed, bottle water is junk. Overpriced, environmentally unfriendly, unhealthy JUNK! People are much better off buying a water filter, they make better water for so much less..and you're not killing your planet! Here's a site I found that compares some of the better brands of water filters: www.WaterFilterComparisons.com

Mark Bridge - 21/02/2008

Why has bottled water suddenly been picked on for its environmental effects and its lack of obvious benefits? Surely imported beer has an equally high impact on the environment but also adversely affects health. Shouldn't we target bottled beer first - then wine - then cola - before attacking water?

Gordon Macmillan - 21/02/2008

Mark, I think the issue is that water is available for free from your tap so there is absolutely no need for it. You could say there was a need and a demand for imported beer.