Is it right that Nestlé profits from selling bottled water?
Many people consider bottled water to be an example of companies making profits on what should be public property. First, Nestlé Waters may be the world’s largest bottled water company, but it still uses only 0.0009 percent (less than one millionth) of total fresh water consumed worldwide, while Nestlé as a whole – including food manufacturing – uses only 0.005 percent. Nestlé is therefore not a significant factor in the global access-to-water debate: agriculture uses 70 percent of total available fresh water, industry 20 percent and domestic users 10 percent. The price of bottled water is closer to that of other bottled drinks than to tap water because it includes the same expenses incurred by all bottled drinks producers: the actual cost of the water, ensuring water purity, providing sterile bottles, ensuring a clean bottling process and, finally, all logistical costs. For more information on how Nestlé husbands water, please visit our water section.
