Aquafina Comes Clean . . . From Tap

 
Consumers can make the same water bottled in Aquafina at home. 

PepsiCo Inc. announced that new labels for its popular Aquafina brand of bottled water will now clearly state that the beverage is only purified water taken from a public source - i.e., tap water.

Although most consumers typically consider bottled water to be “cleaner” and “higher quality,” both Aquafina and Coca-Cola’s Dasani obtain their water from any regular source of tap water.  By contrast, other brands such as Danone’s Evian use “spring” sources, in which the water is supposed to be particularly clean.

The bottled water industry has been regularly criticized by environmentalists, who state that the beverages use excessive amounts of plastic and waste energy in the process of bottling, even though there is little increase in the quality of the water itself.  However, that criticism has done little in the past to slow down sales. 

According to Beverage Digest, U.S. consumers spent an estimated $15 billion on bottled water in 2006, and most industry analysts believe that PepsiCo’s new announcement will not significantly stifle profits. 

“Consumers have an affection for bottled water. It's not an issue of taste or health, it's about convenience," said John Sicher, the publisher for Beverage Digest.  Many expect Coca-Cola to make a similar announcement regard its brand of Dasani water.