Bottled water leak reveals tactics to question tap water safety

Leaked messages between PR professionals representing the Natural Hydration Council (NHC) have uncovered suggestions for promoting bottled water that include the distribution of data undermining the safety of tap water.

Founded by Danone Waters, Nestlé Waters, and Highland Spring, the NHC says its mission is to communicate the facts about bottled water and promote its environmental, health, and other sustainable profits.

But Scotland published an article suggesting that the trade body plans to go beyond this brief and use scare tactic to promote bottled water.

E Coli contamination

The sister newspaper of the Scotsman published exerts from messages sent between PR professionals signifying that data on the contamination of tap water could be useful for conversations with journalists.

The explanations were made following the publication of a report by the Drinking Water Quality Regulator in Scotland. The exposure that two tap samples in Scotland were found to contain E Coli in 2008 sparked off a flurry of messages on how such information should be used.

Response

Beverage Daily visited both 3XI and the NHC which both responded with the same statement denying any desire to attack tap water.

"The NHC advocates better consumption of all water - be it from bottle or tap," said the statement. "It was formed to communicate the facts and health benefits of bottled water and has no mission or desire, either publicly or confidentially to denigrate tap water."

In the past the bottled water industry has been criticized in the press for creating products that are virtually indistinguishable from tap water, save for the plastic packaging. NHC was set to counter this awareness and promote the benefits of bottled water.