October 2016 Vol. 71 No. 10
Editor's Log
Smart Water - Making The Smart Choice
By Robert Carpenter, Editor-in-Chief
Alas, age catches up with us all. But this benchmark I refer to is perhaps the greatest benefit of age – becoming grandparents. My wife and I attended not one, but two, Grandparents Day lunches recently with our 5 and 7-year old grandchildren. It was very enjoyable – any time spent with our grandchildren is special.
Like many schools, our grandchildren’s elementary is always trying to raise extra money for campus needs. In a stroke of smart marketing, the school “coincidentally” scheduled a book fair right after lunch on each of the Grandparents Days. Grandparents were encouraged to visit a large room full of books for sale with their grandkids. It worked like a charm. What grandparent wouldn’t want to purchase a book for their grandchildren? (Or, in our case, three books for each grandchild.)
I didn’t mind this bit of marketing. The money goes to a good cause and I personally love the fact that my grandchildren still like to read books (even though they are both very fluent with their iPads). The American public could use more of this type of fun marketing that costs little yet yields major educational investments for our future.
On the other hand, another type of excessive “smart” marketing has consumers completely fooled and spending money by the billions of dollars – with little or no benefit, only exorbitant costs. The bottled water industry has a very effective worldwide scam going. Companies package multiple variations of water products in fancy plastic bottles and use slick marketing techniques that establish a trendy wave embraced by empty-headed consumers. The entire situation wreaks of profiteering. The bottled water industry grossed in excess of $13 billion last year.
Americans bought more than 11.7 billion gallons of bottled water in 2015 with sales for 2016 expected to increase substantially. Our health-conscience, green-leaning public has bought the bottled water industry’s marketing scam hook, line and sinker.
A recent article published in Men’s Journal cited comments and research from the Environmental Working Group (EWG), an American, nonprofit environmental organization that specializes in research and advocacy in the areas of toxic chemicals, agricultural subsidies, public lands, and corporate accountability. EWG says its mission is “to use the power of public information to protect public health and the environment.” In the article, EWG substantiates much of what our industry has known for years: being in a bottle doesn’t necessarily mean it is healthier. In fact, bottled water may put an individual more at risk.
A study by the EWG found 38 pollutants in 10 brands of bottled water. Even more astounding was the fact that two out of 10 brands tested were chemically indistinguishable from area tap water. Bottled water manufacturers are not required to meet the same standards as your local water utility, nor do they have to share the same basic information that the utility does. The fact is, consumers do not know what they are getting in a bottle of water.
Among the leading sellers of bottled water brands are international beverage companies Pepsi and Coca-Cola, who both, for decades, have been masters of promotion and memorable advertising moments. Who could forget Coke’s “I’d like to teach the world to sing” campaign? Or perhaps you were a member of the Pepsi generation?
Consolidation has become Pepsi and Coke’s path to expansion in the 21st century. The water industry is the hottest growth market around so it was, from a business perspective, quite logical for them to acquire companies and expand into that market. Further, Coke and Pepsi have seen sales of their traditional carbonated/caffeine soft drinks steadily erode. One can’t blame them for pushing products in a growth market. They should just be on the same page as water utilities and held to the same standards, plus not conduct misleading marketing.
But water utilities were on their own in the lopsided marketing battle. And now, Flint happened.
Coca-Cola and Pepsi, along with other major bottled water manufacturers, stand to make billions as the public is even more convinced that ingesting tap water may lead to sickness, deformities or, even worse, life-threatening illness. Flint was an aberration, a mistake of colossal proportion. It was an isolated incident created by very specific circumstances. Unfortunately, it was a misstep that will drive people to a water source at least a 1,000 times more expensive and inherently less safe and healthy.
Being health conscience and making intelligent decisions about what you consume is smart and admirable. But making decisions based on trendy, misleading information is just stupid. It is ironic that in this age of striving to be ultra-eco-aware and health conscience, the public is being led to believe products more dangerous and dramatically less environmentally friendly are the “smart” choice.
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