ACTION ALERT: Stop greenwashing bottled water!

December 1, 2008

The Council of Canadians is joining Friends of the Earth, the Polaris Institute, Wellington Water Watchers and Ecojustice to file a complaint under the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards against Nestlé Waters North America for running a full-page advertisement in the Globe and Mail in October containing misleading information about the environmental and health impacts of its product.

The advertisement, which you will find on our website, falsely claims that:

• "Most bottled water avoids landfill sites and are recycled"
• "Bottled water is the most environmentally responsible consumer product in the world"
• "Nestlé Pure Life is a Healthy Eco-Friendly Choice"

FIND OUT MORE:

To see our press release, go to: http://www.canadians.org/media/water/2008/1-Dec-08.html
To see the news article by Martin Mittelstaedt in today's Globe and Mail, go to: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20081201.WATER01/TPStory/?query=Mittelstaedt
To find out more about bottled water, see: http://www.canadians.org/water/issues/Unbottle It/

TAKE ACTION:

1. Join us in demanding that Nestlé Waters cease to greenwash a product that harms the environment, undermines public drinking water and is potentially harmful to human health. Use the form below to send a letter to Nestlé executive John Challinor.

2.  Let Nestlé know that bottled water is not " the most environmentally responsible consumer product in the world". Email us your suggestions for a list of consumer products more environmentally responsible than bottled water.

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SEND YOUR LETTER NOW:

Subject
Recipients	john.challinor@waters.nestle.com
Compose your letter in the box below.
Dear John Challinor, Given Nestlé Waters’ full-page advertisement which appeared in the Globe and Mail on October 20, 2008 containing several false statements about the impacts of bottled water consumption, we are calling on Nestlé to stop greenwashing bottled water. Your advertisement claims “Most bottled water avoids landfill sites and are recycled,” yet Nestlé’s own 2008 Corporate Citizenship Report Card states that “[t]oday almost all beverage bottles are recyclable, but most are not recycled.” Your advertisement claims “bottled water is the most environmentally responsible consumer product in the world,” yet the production and transportation of bottled water requires massive amounts of fossil fuels and it takes three to five litres of water to produce a one litre bottle of water. Your advertisement claims that “Nestlé Pure Life is a Healthy Eco-Friendly Choice”, yet PET bottles are made from fossil fuels and chemicals. During the production of plastics, substantial amounts of toxic chemicals are released into the air and water supply posing a threat to ecosystems and human health. The information in your advertisement is factually incorrect and constitutes the greenwashing of a product that is harmful to the environment. Tap water is the only healthy and eco-friendly choice. We demand that you refrain from running the advertisement in question, cease to describe your product as eco-friendly or environmentally responsible and stop misleading the public about the environmental impacts of bottled water in all future ad campaigns. Sincerely,
Name
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