Nestle Waters launches first all-recycled water bottle

The 700-milliliter bottle of Nestle Waters North America’s Pure Life Purified Water is made with 100 percent recycled plastic. The 700-milliliter bottle of Nestle Waters North America’s Pure Life Purified Water is made with 100 percent recycled plastic. Photo: Contributed Photo Photo: Contributed Photo Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close Nestle Waters launches first all-recycled water bottle 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

Nestle Waters North America is launching this month a water bottle made entirely with recycled plastic, a first for its current product line and a move the company says shows its commitment to environmentally sustainable packaging.

With the exception of its cap and label, the 700-milliliter bottle of Nestle Pure Life purified water is made only with recycled polyethylene terephthalate, a form of polyester. The new product builds on similar initiatives in recent years that have increased the company’s use of recycled materials and cut down on its plastic consumption.

“Environmental sustainability is an integral part of our company’s purpose and heritage,” Antonio Sciutto, Nestle Waters’ executive vice president and chief marketing officer, said in a statement.

Nestle Waters, which is headquartered at 900 Long Ridge Road in Stamford, is promoting the 700-milliliter bottle in a short video on its social media channels and the Pure Life website that explains the company’s use of recycled materials and encourages consumers to recycle the bottle so that it can be made into a new one.

“Nestle Waters’ commitment to manufacture the Pure Life bottle using 100 percent recycled plastic is critical in growing market support for a consistent, stable supply of quality recyclable material,” Helen Lowman, president and CEO of the Stamford-based nonprofit Keep America Beautiful, said in an email. “It will serve as a proof point and affirm for consumers that the bottle in their hand can come back as a new bottle when they recycle it, which is a message we promote through our ‘Be Recycled’ PSA campaign.”

The company said it is working with existing suppliers and expanding its supplier roster so that it can make recycling easier for consumers and increase its purchasing of recycled plastics.

Among related initiatives, the company said it has reduced the amount of PET plastic in Pure Life half-liter bottles by 40 percent since 2005. In California, single-serving bottles for other Pure Life products and the regional Arrowhead brand are all made with 50 percent recycled plastic.

Last August, the company announced the addition of recycling labels to its bottled half-liter products in the U.S. With the program, Nestle Waters said it became the first beverage manufacturer in North America to add the How2Recycle label to all its major U.S. bottled-water brands.

Nestle Waters officials also cited partnerships with a number of organizations, including Keep America Beautiful, as signs of the company’s focus on environmental sustainability.

“Our ‘Consumer Tracking Recycling Survey’ shows (sustainable packaging and sourcing) is not only the right thing to do for the environment, but it’s also good for business,” Lowman said. “Consumers prefer to buy from companies that use packaging which can be recycled, use recycled content in their packaging and encourage recycling.”

In 2015, Americans bought 11.6 billion gallons of bottled water, a 6.6 percent annual increase, according to market-research firm Beverage Marketing Corp.

Bottled water accounted for about 19 percent of packaged-beverage consumption in the U.S. in 2015, up from about 12 percent in 2003.

“People have made a choice, a conscious decision to lead a different type of lifestyle,” Nelson Switzer, Nestle Waters’ chief sustainability officer, said in an interview last year. “Consumers have become readily aware of the health implications of drinking things other than pure products, and natural spring water is certainly a fantastic alternative.”