The Battle of Bottled Water

The concept of “choice” is not one usually associated with the food and beverages provided by Boston College Dining Services. However, for students whose beverage of choice (during the week) is bottled water, BC offers not one, not two, but three different choices, each coming in different sizes with different characteristics at different prices. Corporate interests are colliding with student tastes in a bottled water battle that has just begun to be waged.

Americans are increasingly turning to bottled water, according to a 1999 study by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). The $4 billion-a-year industry continues to grow rapidly, as people fight for the right to pay from 240 to over 10,000 times the cost of the same amount of tap water.

The first question BC’s devoted consumers should ask themselves when choosing bottled water is if they are really getting their $2.75 worth from that bottle of Evian.

First of all, studies by the NRDC have confirmed that in nearly one-third of the popular brands of bottled water, the water fails to pass at least one state or federal standard for contamination and impurity. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) devotes little effort to the regulation of the bottled water industry, as nearly 70 percent of bottled water sold in the U.S. is exempt from FDA standards since it is sold within the state it was produced. From this perspective, the significantly more stringent standards that the FDA and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) hold to city and town tap water supplies ensure that water is at least safe from bacterial or chemical contamination.

When you buy a bottle of water, you are trusting that the company who bottled it took all of the prudent steps to ensure the safety and purity of the water. Some claim that companies generally hold themselves to a much more lenient standard than public water suppliers are forced to by law.

The term “spring water” evokes images of the purest, most natural environment: water bubbling from a source deep in the woods of Maine, as Poland Spring claims. The sources, though, of other companies’ water are questionable. The lakes and mountains pictured on BC’s beloved Evian and Carrabassett Spring Water bottles don’t necessarily reflect what the source looks like. In one case, the “natural source” was a periodically contaminated well near a waste dump. Now, the filtering process might be thorough enough to render the water drinkable, but the idea of where the water might come from makes the good ol’ Boston tap water sound a little bit better.

Back here at BC, bottled water consumption seems to be an inevitable part of everyone’s life. One can’t walk five minutes in any direction on the BC campus without finding at least one person clutching a bottle of water in his or her hand. So, despite the possible uncertainties of bottled water, BC’s choice seems to clearly lean away from the questionable taste and health level of Boston’s tap water.

Students here at BC clearly do not trust the local tap water. The results of a cursory search for information were not awe-inspiring. The Massachusetts Water Resource Authority’s Web site has detailed information in scientific and layman’s terms on all of Massachusetts’ local water systems. While MWRA is quick to assure people that the water is safe, questionable comments from their 1999 Water Report page include that algae can sometimes cause a “fishy” or “grassy” odor, or that consumers may sometimes taste and smell the chlorine in the water. Other parts of the Web site detail problems such as water turning yellow or brown due to the antiquated maze of pipes the Massachusetts water system depends on. The MWRA claims most of these inconsistencies can be alleviated by drinking from a bottle of tap water in the refrigerator, but it seems that there are some truth to the claims about Boston’s water.

The tap water’s bitter aftertaste has left BC students chugging one of three types of bottled water available on-campus: Evian, Carrabassett and Dasani. Evian, the apparent Mercedes-Benz of bottled water judging by its hefty $2.75 per quart price, also comes in a smaller bottle for students on the run. According to Evian’s Web site, Evian is actually bottled at its source in Evian-les-Bains, in the French Alps.

Evian offers a very unique, smooth taste that “slides down your throat” in the words of one anonymous student. As Evian is the only on-campus bottled water offered in the larger quart bottle, the thirst of the student might be another deciding factor in Evian’s popularity.

For students who want a small taste of France (although French tap water is probably no better than Boston’s) and are willing to pay a premium for it, Evian, available in McElroy Commons, Welch Dining Hall, Stuart Dining Hall and Lower Campus Dining Facility, is the obvious choice.

Many a student has stared at their bottle of Carrabassett Spring Water and contemplated where exactly Carrabassett, Maine is, and that it must be a very beautiful place to justify the crude sketch of mountains found on its bottle. Carrabassett, which comes only in a 24 oz. bottle, is the more economical option for hydration-seeking students. Carrabassett’s Web site, while not as flashy as Evian’s (which offered downloadable Evian screen savers and graphics, among other things), cuts through the mystery of Poland Spring’s much smaller stepbrother in Maine.

Carrabassett, a relative bargain at only $1.25 a bottle, offers a clean, crisp taste that appeals to almost every BC student. According to their Web site, they also offer Custom Label Spring Water for schools, institutions and businesses, which brings up the obvious question; while there is an infinite supply of BC paper cups floating around campus, why can’t we show our Superfan pride and chug bottles of Eagle Spring Water?

Carrabassett is also available in the dining halls mentioned for Evian, but the demand for the cheaper, universally appealing Carrabassett causes there to be a constant glut of Evian and slim supply of cold Carrabassett available during busy times.

Finally, there is the dark horse of the competition, Coca-Cola’s own Dasani brand of bottled water. Despite the Coke domination of BC’s campus, Dasani has not yet wormed its way into the dining halls and instead is slowly penetrating the BC campus by way of vending machines.

Dasani is marketed as an “a purified, non-carbonated water enhanced with minerals for a pure, fresh taste,” in the words of Coca-Cola’s Web site. Available from the vending machines in the Plex and other campus locations, the bottles of Dasani are quickly snapped up by thirsty students bearing EagleOne cards brimming with Convenience Bucks.

The water definitely does have a unique, mineral-enhanced taste to it, and unlike the other bottled waters that sometimes are lukewarm straight out of the refrigerator, Dasani is always well chilled by the vending machines. So, if you’re ever around a vending machine, cross your fingers, hope it will accept your $1.50 worth of Convenience Bucks and try BC’s other bottled water option.

Thus, the bottled water battle rages on at BC. Evian and Carrabassett clash, struggling to dominate and quench the thirsty masses, but the amount of Evian that constantly seems to be left on the shelves leads some to believe that Carrabassett might slowly be winning. Dasani emerges as a possible contender, but only if Coca-Cola strong-arms “the powers that be” into having it sold in the dining halls.

Some students have found other options; buying different brands of bottled water (Poland Spring especially) off-campus, or purchasing water-filter pitchers and bottled water services to satisfy their hydration needs. In the words of The Waterboy, “That’s some high-quality H2O.”