The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with North America and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (June 2021) |
Nestlé Pure Life is a brand of bottled water from Nestlé Waters globally and BlueTriton Brands in North America. The brand was first established in 1998 in Pakistan and is now available in 21 countries in Asia, the Americas, Africa, and Europe.[1] In early April 2021, the sale of Nestlé Waters North America's bottling operations, including Nestlé Pure Life, to One Rock Capital Partners LLC and Metropoulos & Co. was concluded.[2]
 | |
| Market | Worldwide |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Nestlé Waters (Globally) BlueTriton Brands (North America) |
| Introduced | 1998 |
| Tagline | "A healthy, active lifestyle starts with staying well hydrated with Nestlé Pure Life Purified Water." |
| Website | nestlepurelife.com |
| All concentrations in milligrams per liter (mg/L); pH without units | |
History
editNestlé Pure Life was first launched in 1998 in Pakistan, and started being sold in Europe in 2000.[3]
Pakistan
editThe first critical report on Nestlé Pure Life's negative impact on environment and the enjoyment of the human right to water in Pakistan was authored by human rights advocate Nils Rosemann and published by Actionaid Pakistan and Swiss Coalition of Development Organisations in 2005.[4] A report in 2006 called for stronger regulation of and adherence by Nestlé Water to existing regulations and to be accountable to its social and environmental commitments.[5] Notwithstanding numerous press statements by Nestlé[6] an audit report ordered by the Supreme Court of Pakistan found that Nestlé Water extracts water without any costs,[7] and the Supreme Court "termed the margins of distributors and retailers ‘very high’ and ‘unjustified’ as compared to the private company’s profit".[8]
North America
editNestlé Pure Life began being sold in the North America in 2002 when Aberfoyle Springs branded water, which brand and facilities Nestlé bought in 2000, was rebranded as Nestlé Pure Life Aberfoyle and later Nestlé Pure Life Natural Spring Water. Aberfoyle Springs was first established in 1993. Nestlé also began to bottle Montclair branded water at the facilities. As of mid 2020, the water extracted by Nestlé Canada was from a source in Aberfoyle, Ontario, a well in Erin, Ontario and another in Hope, British Columbia.[9] The company also owned a well in Elora, Ontario which had yet to be tapped.[10] On 3 July 2020, Nestlé Canada announced that it had agreed to sell its water bottling business to Ice River Springs, of Shelburne, Ontario. The latter would acquire the source and bottling operations in Aberfoyle, Ontario and in Hope, British Columbia, and a well in Erin, Ontario. The announcement came after the Government of Ontario announced plans that would allow municipalities greater power to veto new bottling plants and to set new restrictions on removing groundwater.[11] Nestlé, however, stated that its plans to sell the water bottling business was already in the planning stages in 2019.[12] Ice River was expected to take over the Pure Life brand and the ReadyRefresh delivery service. The deal was awaiting regulator approval which was not achieved in a timely manner leading Nestlé to cancel the deal in early September 2020.[13]
On 16 February 2021, Nestlé announced that it had agreed to sell most of its water brands in North America to One Rock Capital Partners and Metropoulos & Co, creating BlueTriton Brands. The sale, which concluded in early April, included the spring water and mountain brands, including the North America assets of Pure Life, the purified water brand and the delivery service. The deal did not include the Perrier, S.Pellegrino and Acqua Panna brands.[2][14]
Production and distribution
editIn Canada, Nestlé has two bottling facilities that produce Nestlé Pure Life branded water. The larger of the two facilities is located in Aberfoyle, Ontario and the smaller one is in Hope, BC. Warehouses are located in Chilliwack, British Columbia, Hamilton, Ontario and Laval, Quebec. Nestlé Pure Life water is sold in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, including the Middle East, and Africa. In South Africa, Nestlé Pure Life is produced by Clover Waters. [15]
Controversy
editThis article's "criticism" or "controversy" section may compromise the article's neutrality. (October 2020) |
Nestlé has been criticized for bottling water in poor regions like South America, which could drain natural water sources and deprive people who are unable to afford the expensive bottled water. The movie Bottled Life documented the situation and won several film awards.[16]
In Canada, much of the water extracted by the company for its Pure Life brand has been at a source in the village of Aberfoyle, Ontario in Puslinch, Ontario, located in Wellington County, Ontario and under the jurisdiction of the City of Guelph, Ontario. For some years, the local advocacy group Wellington Water Watchers (formed in 2007)[17] has expressed concern about the amount of water being extracted by the company.[18] After the planned sale of Nestlé Canada's water bottling business to Ice River Springs was announced in early July 2020, Wellington Water Watchers said that this was "a victory for the people of Ontario ... a response by Nestle to public pressure".[10] In a later statement, however, a spokesperson said that Ontario should be phasing out the bottled water industry, a "low priority and frivolous use of the water taking".[19]
Nearly a year earlier (July 2019), the Wellington group had demanded that the provincial government obtain an environmental assessment before renewing the company's licence to remove any groundwater. (Water taking is controlled by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks.)[20] At the time, Nestlé's permit to extract up to 3.6 million litres of water per day was close to coming up for renewal.[18][21] The most recent study (reported in March 2020) by the City of Guelph about the Aberfoyle source included this comment: Nestlé's water-taking "has not caused a decline or drop in water levels year after year" and that "water-taking at the current rate is sustainable at this point in time".[20]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Pure Life Natural Spring Water". Nestlé Waters. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
- ^ a b Armstrong, Kenneth (2 April 2021). "Nestle Waters sale finalized and a day later Ontario lifts moratorium on permits". Guelph Today. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
The 4.3 billion U.S. dollar sale of Nestle Waters North America to One Rock Capital Partners LLC was announced in February and the sale closed on Wednesday
- ^ "Discover Our Water". Nestlé Pure Life. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ Rosemann, Nils (April 2005). "Drinking Water Crisis in Pakistan and the Issue of Bottled Water". Retrieved July 24, 2024 – via ircwash.org.
- ^ Rosemann, Nils (April 2005). "Drinking Water Crisis in Pakistan and the issue of Bottled Water - The Case of Nestlé's 'Pure Life'" (PDF). Retrieved July 24, 2024 – via ircwash.org.
- ^ Neo, Pearly (2018-09-20). "Pakistan water crisis: Nestle, PepsiCo and Coca-Cola amongst companies summoned for water usage". foodnavigator-asia.com. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Pakistan: Audit report finds Nestle Pakistan extracting and wasting water without any costs". business-humanrights.org. 2018-11-08. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ "Audit report finds profit margins in bottled water sale unjustified". dawn.com. October 31, 2018. Retrieved 2024-07-24.
- ^ Golder Associates (March 2019). "Nestlé Waters Canada Erin Spring Site 2018 annual monitoring report" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2020 – via Nestlé Waters Canada.
- ^ a b Rubin, Josh (3 July 2020). "Environmentalists cheer as Nestlé sells Canadian water business to Shelburne's Ice River Springs". Toronto Star. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ Jones, Alison (27 June 2020). "Ontario government proposes new water bottling policies, more municipal power". CFOX. The Canadian Press. Archived from the original on 7 April 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Nestle sells Pure Life bottled water business as changes to Ontario groundwater rules loom". CBC News. The Canadian Press. 2 July 2020. Archived from the original on 28 May 2023.
- ^ Rubin, Josh (2 September 2020). "Sales of Nestlé's Canadian water business to Ice River Springs is called off". Toronto Star. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Nestle to sell North American water brands to buyout firm One Rock for $4.3-billion". Globe and Mail. Reuters. 17 February 2021. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
sell its North American water brands including Pure Life and Poland Spring
- ^ "Country Selector". Nestle Pure Life. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
- ^ "The Story – BOTTLED LIFE – The Truth about Nestlé's Business with Water (Documentary)". BottledLifeFilm.com. Archived from the original on 16 July 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
- ^ "Welcome". wellingtonwaterwatchers.ca. Wellington Water Watchers. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ a b Khan, Anam (15 July 2019). "Wellington Water Watchers sends big message in fight against Nestlé". Guelph Today. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ Shetty, Aastha (4 July 2020). "Ontario should 'gradually phase out bottled water': Wellington Water Watchers". Kitchener Today. Archived from the original on 4 July 2020.
- ^ a b "Triton (formerly Nestlé) water-taking and Guelph's water supply". City of Guelph. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
- ^ Heck, Alexandra (9 July 2019). "'This is an unsustainable industry': Wellington Water Watchers anticipate Nestle permit renewal". Orangeville.com. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
