Ryan Williams
Writ 340 Fall 2013
Defending the Tap
Introduction
Susan Wellington, President of Quaker Oats Company’s U.S. beverage division, told
industry analysts, “When we’re done, tap water will be relegated to showers and washing
dishes.” [1]. She was speaking on behalf of the bottle water market. The consumption of which
has risen dramatically in recent decades. The shift occurred by aggressively questioning tap
water as an inferior and unsafe product. Raising doubts in the public over tap water quality and
taste. The following paper will reveal how unfounded these claims are, let’s take a closer
investigation looks into the origins and taste of bottled water.
The Rise of Bottled Water
Today, asking for some water would not entail the follow up question, “bottled or tap?” It
is a simple question that reveals how prevalent bottled water has become in society. More
shocking, is the rapid rate at which it has occurred. In the 1970s Americans consumed 350
million gallons of bottled water [1]. By 2008, the U.S. consumed over 9 billion gallons of bottled
water [1]. From figure 1 it is clear that the use of bottled water has sky rocketed in the past 40
years, and it is believed that bottled water will overtake beer, coffee, and soft drinks in the next
five years (Howell).
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Figure 1. U.S. Consumption of Bottled Water [1]
It can be found everywhere from vending machines to upscale restaurants. One restaurant
in Los Angeles has taken it so far, as to create a 40-page menu detailing the qualities of 20
different varieties of bottled water [2]. The International Bottled Water Association (IBWA)
encompasses 170 bottled water brands [3]. However, this number reflects only a fraction of the
options currently on the market. Restaurant chains and grocery stores are now eagerly promoting
their own generic varieties. This level of market penetration is only possible by beating the
competition, in this case tap water.
Discrediting Tap Water
The reality is that public perception has changed to perceive tap water as an inferior
product to bottled water. This task was accomplished by beverage companies, who aggressively
questioned the safety and taste of tap water [1]. When the reality is that tap water is as safe if not
safer than bottled water, while claims of inferior taste are unfounded.
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It is hard to comprehend that people are willing to spend a thousand times more for
bottled water, than drink for free from the tap [4]. Nonetheless, this has become the current
mindset. The only way to fool
people into paying this much for
an essentially free commodity is to
claim that tap water is inferior [1].
A study conducted by the
American Water Works
Association Research Foundation found that 7% chose bottled water for its taste, 47% reported
concerns over water safety, and 47% as an alternative to other beverages [5].
This can attributed to the direct marketing attacks from the bottled water industry.
Stephen Kay, IBWA spokesman, claimed, “The difference between bottled water and tap water
is that bottled water’s content is consistent” [1]. Another bottled water company claimed on their
website that “Tap water can be inconsistent… The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has
reported that hundreds of sources have failed to meet minimum standards” [1]. Meanwhile,
beverage companies use a steady stream of marketing terms to promote superior flavors in their
water. These claims seek to undermine the confidence in tap water and sway people to buy
bottled.
Tap water is as safe if not safer than bottled water. A key point to make is that bottled
water is regulated by the FDA, while the EPA regulates tap water [6]. The FDA follows similar
guidelines in terms of maximum pollution content [7]. However, the testing procedures and
frequency are more stringent under the EPA [6]. One other key difference is minerals that can be
added to consumer beverages for flavor. For instance, in bottled water sodium levels can be
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significantly higher since it is a consumer product [7]. Meanwhile, high sodium levels are
restricted in municipal water supplies over health concerns.
Where does Bottled Water Really Come From?
If you spend the time to look at the label of a bottle of water, you will find images of
picturesque mountains and glaciers, basic health information, and a vague description of the
water you are about to drink. An aggressive marketing campaign has questioned the safety and
quality of municipal water systems, yet, the question needs to be asked where does the water in
bottled water come from? The answer reveals a large disparity between what is being marketed
and what is being actually sold. Shockingly, most water comes from the same sources as
municipal water supplies. Worse yet to market certain types of bottled water like spring water
requires unnecessary extraction methods that harm the environment.
Many brands prefer to use terms such as glacial and arctic, to conjure images of
undisturbed frozen water. However, most of these brands were pumped within the continental
U.S., for instance Florida, Texas, and California [1]. One brand was labeled Alaska Glacial
Water, and was in fact just plain municipal water from the city of Juneau [1]. Another popular
seller is spring water, but in fact many large brands which carry the name of a specific spring, no
longer pump from that region. This is the result of over-pumping. In some instances water is
pumped from springs all across the country and mixed in one central plant, in order to maintain a
consistency in taste. For example, the brand Arrowhead originated from a spring in the San
Bernadino Mountains however, greater demand required more water sources. In the end Nestle
had to pump 200 million gallons a year for arrowhead spring water from a desert spring located
in Cabazon, California [1].
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Figure 2. Locations of Pumping Station for Various Bottle Water Brands
Most water companies keep the location of their water a closely hidden secret, and there
is a good reason for doing so. The fact is that 40% of bottled water is re-bottled tap water [5]. In
some cases the bottled water companies use approved filtration methods to re-filter the water.
However, in others tap water
is simply bottled. This
percentage would rise even
higher if non-direct sources
were included. This entails
bottle water companies
collecting water from the same body of water. For instance, a bottle water company may pump
from the same aquifer as a municipal water district. The source is exactly the same, except the
location is different.
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In recent years the most marketable water has been natural spring water. Large beverage
companies found that consumers were willing to pay a premium when water was labeled as
“spring” [8]. More than half of bottled water is labeled as spring water [1]. According to the
FDA, in order to label bottle water as “spring” the company must pump water close to the
source. This has dire consequences for the downstream habitat, causing streams and rivers to dry
up prematurely. Any wildlife that relies on this water is forced to find other sources or perish.
The most frustrating fact of all is that the same quality and composition of water could easily be
obtained by pumping water a couple miles from the source, and sparing the ecosystem [8].
However, the necessity to put “spring” on a bottle and a seemingly insignificant government
regulation, has led to the destruction of numerous aquatic habitats.
Artesian Water
Mineral Water
Purified Water
Spring Water
Well that taps an aquifer in
which the water level is
higher than the top of the aquifer
Contains at least 250 parts per
million total dissolved solids
Produced by distillation, deionization,
reverse osmosis, or other approved
treatment procedures
From an underground formation from
which water flows to the surface
Table 1. Other Bottled Water Definitions and their Sources
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The Taste Test
Addressing the second component of bottled water’s supposed superiority is in regards to
taste. Taste is obviously subjective, but investigating the terms bottled water companies use to
sell their water may provide some insight. Bottled water often use the term “pure” in their
product descriptions or name. For example Absopure, Besco Pure Premium Drinking Water,
Kyuka Pure Spring Water, and Nestle Pure Life to name only a fraction of them. One brand, 10
Thousand BC, collects its water from a glacier off the coast of Canada to claim the highest level
of purity. On the other hand, other brands claim it is the essential mix of minerals that give the
water a crisp and refreshing taste.
To put it bluntly, countless taste tests have found that people cannot distinguish between
tap water and bottled water. Bottled water does not provide customers with some ultra pure
source of water. The high-tech manufacturing industry uses some of the purest water on earth,
known as Ultra-Pure Water (UPW). UPW is so pure, that it is considered an industrial solvent,
and harmful to human health [9]. This form of water is not found naturally anywhere on earth
and consists of only water molecules, with no dust, salt, or minerals to be found [9]. One glass
would not kill you, but would leach away essential minerals and salts from your body. The taste
of UPW is described as flat, heavy, bitter, and just plain awful [9]. Ironically, wastewater that is
treated to potable drinking standards is also considered so pure that drinking it is considered a
health hazard. It is the result of a purification process that eliminates harmful substances in waste
but also removes beneficial minerals. The solution to communities that use recycled wastewater
is to actually add minerals back into the water. With this description in mind it is preferable that
the purest water on earth may not be the best tasting.
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Water as we know it, gets it refreshing flavor from the salts and minerals that are
dissolved amongst the water molecules. The World Health Organization [10] conducted a study
on the nutritional value of water. The study concluded that calcium, magnesium, fluoride,
sodium, copper, selenium, and potassium were all found to be in potentially significant levels in
drinking water [10]. It is these types of minerals that inevitably affect the taste of water. Spring
water being in contact with rocks and soil may in fact have a distinctive flavor. However,
municipal water supplies often draw upon water from the same source. This would suggest that
the mineral composition is the same.
The Future for Tap
Re-thinking Susan Wellington’s earlier quote brings to mind if in fact drinking tap water
will be replaced by the bottle. In 2008 and 2009 sales of bottled water dropped for the first time
since the 1970s [11]. It coincided with the recession that led consumers to turn back to the tap for
a cheaper alternative. More recently, in 2012 bottle water consumption grew to 9.1 billion in the
U.S., the highest level to date [12]. Despite increasing awareness over bottle waters lack of
superiority over tap water, Americans are still drinking the product at record breaking rates. The
future of tap is looking to be at the mercy of the bottled water industry. It is the hope of this
paper that increased awareness over the fallacies presented by bottled water, will present tap
water as the better option.
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Author Biography
Ryan Williams is a student at the University of Southern California studying civil
engineering. He grew up in California and currently lives in Los Angeles.
Bibliography
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