For the first time ever, U.S. consumers are drinking more bottled water than soda — but not necessarily just for the reasons you’re thinking, reports Bloomberg.
Yes, bottled water’s convenience and health factors are appealing, but lead contamination water crises like that in Flint, Michigan are also creating a unique tap water fear factor.
“Concerns in places like Flint do bring bottled water to people’s attention as a safe and sealed source of drinking water,” Jane Lazgin, a spokeswoman for Nestle Waters North America, tells Bloomberg.
Euromonitor data shows that in 2016, an American consumer will drink 27.4 gallons of bottled water, inching past soda by 1.2 gallons.
Bottled water, of course, brings with it its own concerns regarding cost and recycling. Peter Gleick, president emeritus and chief scientist at the Pacific Institute, tells Bloomberg bottled water is approximately (on average) 2,000 times pricier than tap. The National Association for PET Container Resources calculates that just under one-third of plastic bottles are recycled.
“Bottled water might be a Band-Aid solution for situations like Flint,” John Stewart, deputy director of Corporate Accountability International, tells Bloomberg, “but it is definitely not a long-term solution for providing daily drinking water needs.”
That being said, bottled water’s health appeal is easily stronger than any kind of change soda companies could make for soft drinks. Carbonated soft drink per capita consumption hit its lowest in 30 years last year, says Beverage Digest.
Remember, of course, that this still won’t disturb too many soda companies, considering each has signature bottled water brands — i.e. The Coca-Cola Co. (ticker: KO), PepsiCo (PEP), and Dr Pepper Snapple Group (DPS). That’s not to say they won’t try other efforts to keep consumers interested in soda, like PepsiCo’s Crystal Pepsi comeback.
PepsiCo’s stock is up 8 percent for the year, while Coca-Cola’s is up just over 1 percent. Dr Pepper Snapple is so far up 4 percent.
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More People Are Flocking to Bottled Water Over Soda originally appeared on usnews.com
