[Sugarberry]

NEW YORK (Reuters) -- PepsiCo Inc. will spell out that its Aquafina bottled water is made with tap water, a concession to the growing environmental and political opposition to the bottled water industry. According to Corporate Accountability International, a U.S. watchdog group, the world's No. 2 beverage company will include the words "Public Water Source" on Aquafina labels.
art.aquafina.gi.jpg

Pepsi's Aquafina bottled water and Coca-Cola's Dasani are made from purified tap water.

"If this helps clarify the fact that the water originates from public sources, then it's a reasonable thing to do," said Michelle Naughton, a Pepsi-Cola North America spokeswoman.

Pepsi Chief Executive Indra Nooyi told Reuters earlier this week the company was considering such a move.

Pepsi's Aquafina and Coca-Cola Co's Dasani are both made from purified water sourced from public reservoirs, as opposed to Danone's Evian or Nestle's Poland Spring, so-called "spring waters," shipped from specific locations the companies say have notably clean water.

Coca-Cola Co. told Reuters it will start posting online information about the quality control testing it performs on Dasani by the end of summer or early fall.

"Concerns about the bottled-water industry, and increasing corporate control of water, are growing across the country," said Gigi Kellett, director of the "Think Outside the Bottle" campaign, which aims to encourage people to drink tap water.

San Francisco's mayor banned city employees from using city funds to buy bottled water when tap water is available. Ann Arbor, Michigan passed a resolution banning commercially bottled water at city events and Salt Lake City, Utah asked department heads to eliminate bottled water.

Critics charge the bottled water industry adds plastic to landfills, uses too much energy by producing and shipping bottles across the world and undermines confidence in the safety and cleanliness of public water supplies, all while much of the world's population is without access to clean water.

But industry observers said such opposition is unlikely to drain U.S. sales of bottled water, which reached 2.6 billion cases in 2006, according to Beverage Digest. The industry newsletter estimated that U.S. consumers spent about $15 billion on bottled water last year. "Consumers have an affection for bottled water. It's not an issue of taste or health, it's about convenience," the newsletter's publisher, John Sicher, said. "Try walking up (New York City's) Third Avenue on a hot day and getting a glass of tap water."

Dave Kolpak, a portfolio manager at Victory Capital Management, said the environmental objections will have little impact on the bottom line for either Pepsi or Coke, though he admitted it could slow the market's growth rate.

"Pepsi and Coke do not make a lot of profit" on bottled water, said Kolpak, adding that people may talk about the issue, but will likely continue buying some bottled water. Victory Capital owns about 3 million shares of PepsiCo among its $62 billion under management.

sourcehttp://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/07/27...eut/index.html

[GOTFIVEONIT]

hahaha and idoits pay money for free tap water in a plastic bottle. thats why i never buy 'bottled water'.

[hijabihoodlum]

it's almost become taboo to say you drink tap water; people look down on it. so sad.

[IbnMardhiyah]

Going strictly by the comments made by visiting American friends and family, the tap water up here in Canada is better in quality and taste than the bottled water y'all get down south.

Up here we drink from the tap all the time, and because of the close similarity in taste between tap and bottled water, we would always say that bottled mineral / spring water was a scam, and that it was just tap water probably, and now that seems to be the case.

[Timbit]

Purified water tastes disgusting though, especially Aquafina (made by Pepsi) and Dasani (made by Coke). Mmmm, all those extra minerals and chlorine and stuff in my tap water makes it taste yummy, haha.

We used to buy bottled water and still do actually, mostly for my grandma, but we mostly drink tap water. The bottled water is just for convenience sometimes, when you have to take a bottle with you. I try to keep a Nalge (big reusable plastic container) on me at all times which I fill up before I leave the house and when I'm at school, but sometimes when I'm at other unfamiliar places, it's hard to find water fountains where I can fill my bottle up. So yeah... sometimes I am forced to buy bottled water. But I hate, hate, hate when I'm walking around a mall or something and all there is is Aquafina or Dasani (not both in the same mall; different places exclusively stock one or the other). I much prefer Nestle or Montclair.

[LEGALEAGLE]

Hmm i've tasted glacial water in Pakistan and it tasted sooo sweet

[socceroni67]

Im gonna tell this to my cousin
she buys a box a week

[bluey]

Aquafina is the most expenisve water bottle in Dubai compared to other brands.

[GOTFIVEONIT]

all water tastes the same and my tap water comes from lake michigan so no one looks down on it. mostly because there are water fountains anywhere you go all over the greater chicagoland area. so everyone in a sense drinks tap water here.