The French General Directorate General for Health revealed on April 25 local time that 2 million bottles of sparkling water from Perrier, a well-known sparkling mineral water brand under Nestle, may be required to be destroyed because of bacteria contaminated with feces. The sparkling water was produced between March 10 and 14 and comes from a water source near Nîmes, the capital of the Gard department in southern France.
It is worth noting that this is the second time this year that Nestlé has been exposed for drinking water safety issues. In January, French prosecutors launched a criminal investigation into Nestlé's French drinking water subsidiary for purifying natural mineral water. According to Agence France-Presse, Nestlé has admitted to illegally using ultraviolet lamps, carbon filtration and other methods to disinfect natural mineral water.
■Liao Muxing/Picture
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Perrier may be contaminated with bacteria in the feces
Agence France-Presse reported that Perrier water from a water source near Nîmes may have been contaminated with bacteria in feces, and the health authorities of the Occitanie region in southern France have ordered the production company, Nestlé's branch of Nestlé, which operates drinking water in France, to destroy all batches of Parisian water.
In response, Nestlé said that the destruction of the water was "just in case" and that the rest of the Perrier water sold in the store was "safe to drink".
This is the second food safety crisis that Nestlé has faced this year. In January, French prosecutors launched a criminal investigation into Nestlé's French drinking water subsidiary for purifying natural mineral water. According to Agence France-Presse, Nestlé admitted to illegally using ultraviolet lamps, carbon filtration and other methods to disinfect natural mineral water.
It is also understood that the incident not only dealt a major blow to the Swiss food giant Nestle, but its subsidiary Perrier was also subject to a criminal investigation, accused of using illegal means to purify its mineral water.
The reporter checked the information and found that there were previous reports questioning the production method of Nestle's products. At the beginning of this year, some media revealed that at least one-third of the bottled water brands sold in the French market were fraudulent, and the so-called "natural mineral water" was actually "made" from "water with pollution risk" according to the tap water process.
The report was prompted by an intersectoral meeting held in February 2023 between the French Ministry of Economy and Health, on the agenda of Nestlé and its bottled water production base in France.
In fact, back in 2020, there were rumors that French bottled water producers were using non-compliant production methods.
The report cited a classified government document saying that companies such as Nestlé had been using non-compliant treatment for years. Due to sporadic contamination from bacterial or chemical sources, these companies use microfiltration technology, ultraviolet light, and carbon actives to treat bottled water sold as "spring" or "natural mineral water" below the 0.8 micron (μm) threshold. These purification technologies apply to tap water or "treated drinkable water", but are prohibited for use in "spring water" or "natural mineral water".
French journalists investigated and found that in the list of customers who bought the same non-compliant filters, investigators found the name of Nestlé.
Nestlé has two mineral water production sites in France, one in Vosges, which produces bottled water under the Vittel, Contrex and Hépar brands, and the other in Verge, where Perrier is produced.
Nestlé produces one-third of the bottled water available in France.
The way Nestlé has produced it over the years shows that the company's natural mineral water is neither "pure" nor "natural". French media pointed out that the aquifers exploited by Nestlé are often contaminated with microorganisms, such as E. coli. Pesticide residues have also been found in the source of Perrier.
Why would Nestlé take the risk of illegally producing bottled water? "The multiplication of extreme events such as droughts and floods due to climate and environmental changes, combined with the expansion of human activity around its production sites, has made it very difficult to maintain the stability of the basic properties of natural mineral water." ”
According to the regulations of the French National Agency for Food, Environment and Occupational Health and Safety (ANSES), "natural mineral water" refers to natural and pure water, which can be drunk directly, and bottled water marked with the words "spring water" or "natural mineral water" should come from well-preserved groundwater resources, which is very pure natural water and must not be sterilized.
In fact, this is not the first time that Nestle has been involved in fraud disputes. According to a number of foreign media reports in 2017, Nestle was sued in the United States, and consumers from eight states in the United States, including Connecticut and Maine, said that Nestle North America deceived them into paying exorbitant fees by labeling Poland Spring as "100% natural spring water", but in fact Poland Spring is just "ordinary groundwater".
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The growth rate of the market has slowed down, and foreign brands have "lowered their prices" to grab the market
With the upgrading of consumption and the enhancement of public health awareness, selling water has become a "good business", and major consumer brands have entered the game to get a piece of the pie.
According to the analysis of the "2024-2029 China High-end Mineral Water Industry Development Prospect and In-depth Research and Analysis Report" of the China Research Industry Research Institute, at present, in the competition in the domestic high-end water market, the three foreign brands of foreign brands Evian, Sparklin and Perrier occupy more than 50% of the market share, and the price of a single bottle starts from 10 yuan to 100 yuan series, and the market share will exceed 10 billion.
As the top of the bottled water pyramid, Perrier has always occupied a major share of the high-end market with its "scarce water source" and "unique taste".
According to public information, the history of Perrier can be traced back to 1863, and it has been a brand for more than 160 years. According to its promotional materials, the only source of water in Paris is the Perrier spring, located in the town of Vergèze in the Vosges Mountains, and is one of the few sources in the world that naturally contains bubbles.
The long history, coupled with the unique "brand story", concretizes the abstract brand temperament and provides consumers with more "added value". Perrier is also labelled as the "Champagne of Mineral Water" and is a high-end water brand that sells well all over the world, including the Chinese market.
It is understood that Perrier entered the Chinese market as early as 1980, but it has been very low-key, in the Chinese market has been silently muffled to make a fortune, especially after the acquisition of Nestle in 1992, from 2010 to 2014, Perrier sales growth in the Chinese market have exceeded 30%, in order to meet the global sales growth demand, Perrier has also increased the production line.
In recent years, domestic water-making enterprises and foreign capital have also focused on the high-end water market. Among the international brands, there are many cross-border players, such as the liquor company Anhui Yingjiagong Liquor Group launched Yingjiashan Spring, Haoliyou launched Haoliyou Lava Spring, Yili launched Yike Huoquan, BESTORE launched a new private brand mineral water called "Liangpin Huoquan", and even the beauty brand Kristina also launched a high-end drinking water brand Babenong Natural Mineral Water, which are all strong competitors of brands such as Evian and Perrier.
With the destruction of 2 million bottles of Perrier, the safety of high-end water abroad has caused public concern.
In fact, the popularity of Perrier is supported by the demand for high-end business, catering and the middle class in first- and second-tier cities. However, it is undeniable that with the addition of more and more brands and the slowdown in market growth year by year, major brands have chosen to lower their profile in response to competition, such as bottled water in the Italian Alps, which used to be directly filled in Paraviso springs in the Italian Alps, and in recent years, it has also found alternative water sources in Jiangxi and launched a domestic version;
The reporter searched the e-commerce platform and found that Pinduoduo had a store that lowered the price of Evian 500ml/24 bottles to 50 yuan, and the unit price was as low as about 2 yuan. The 330ml/24 bottle is only 32 yuan, less than 1.5 yuan per bottle, which is almost the same as the price of low-end mineral water in China.
Another factor that cannot be ignored is that bottled water is subject to the external environment, and the import volume is shrinking rapidly. In 2019, the import volume reached 785,700 tons, and from January to October 2022, it was only 127,300 tons.
The reason for this is that Ye Shuqiang, president of the Guangdong Food Safety and Security Promotion Association, said that with the improvement of the public's awareness of drinking water and more pragmatic and rational consumption, they will prefer to choose more cost-effective brands. In recent years, the rise of domestic high-end drinking water has further squeezed the space for foreign brands. In order to compete for a larger mass consumer market, imported high-end water has changed its "high image" and invariably "lowered its price".
■New Express reporter Chen Fuxiang