BrandWeek: ‘Sales drought’ for big water bottlers 6

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1. 

   Gar Lipow Posted 4:00 am
   09 Sep 2008

   I have a bleg on bottled waterI long since cut out all bottled water with one exception. I buy 5 or 6 1 gallon liter containers, keep them 18 months, then gradually use to them up and replace them with new ones. That way I have an emergency water supply should earthquake or storm cut off the sink and trap me. This is standard emergency advice.  Is there an alternative. I don't think putting water into my own containers is a reasonable alternative because I don't think self bottled water keeps as well. (One does not self-bottle in those quantities under aseptic conditions.) A reusable container is fine for day to day use but I don't think so much for long term emergency storage where the water will be left untouched for over a year. Any suggestions?

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2. 

   kmp Posted 4:15 am
   09 Sep 2008

   A rain barrel......and a good water filter?
   Personally, I don't think buying half a dozen gallon jugs of water once a year or so is too damaging, from a sustainability standpoint.

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3. 

   Werdna Posted 4:25 am
   09 Sep 2008

   Same with organic foodI don't know where I heard it, but I believe that there is a similar slump in the organic market.  Unfortunately, people are less willing to spend money on "luxury" items when they can get cheap stuff.
   
   Andrew Eisenberg
   
   
   The gateway project is wrong---http://www.livableregion.ca

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4. 

   Tom Philpott Posted 6:04 am
   09 Sep 2008

   that's a non-problem, Gar...... but, you should check into the kind of plastic you're getting. I don't have my copy of Bottlemania with me now, but I do remember Royte saying that those one-gallon water jugs use a really nasty kind of plastic -- nastier than the clear plastic used for standard >1 liter bottles.
   Andrew, growth in organics is slowing a bit due to factors you mention. But with this water stuff, I think another factor (besides economic pain) is that greenie types are abandoning bottled water fast. At Slow Food Nation in SF last week, organizers tried real hard to -- and generally succeeding in -- banishing bottled water completely. They were really pushing filtered tap water. Brandishing a bottle of water drew reactions about like chowing down an Oscar Meyer wiener -- I don't think that would have been the case as recently as a year ago.
   
   Victual Reality

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5. 

   mcronheim Posted 8:08 am
   09 Sep 2008

   what about corporate?I'm inclined to assert that the massive scale-back in bottled water purchasing by huge companies to stock their break-rooms has a monumental effect here. I do some consulting for a huge IT company in the process of discontinuing bottled water. A few of these huge buyers could have a considerable impact in this market.
   
   Matthew Cronheim
   
   

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6. 

   E Royte Posted 10:59 pm
   10 Sep 2008

   . . . but enhanced waters keep on rollingWhile plain old bottled water has taken a hit (thanks to the economy and to the educational campaigns of pressure groups), the enhanced water category has grown enormously: up 18.4 percent during the same period. While it's true that nutrient- or caffeine-enhanced waters don't come from our taps, the production of those bottles (any bottles), and their transportation and disposal still present many of the same environmental problems as un-enhanced waters.

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