The Dutch drink more and more water and more often flavoured.
The Dutch drink more and more water and more often flavoured.
The latest figures on water do not lie: the Dutch are drinking more and more water, and they are also increasingly finding flavoured water tastier.
That may be healthy, but not as good for the environment as bottled water. We have listed the figures for you.
37% more water
The Dutch are increasingly opting for mineral water – with or without a flavor – as a healthy thirst quencher. Sales of the total category of water increased by 37% between 2011 and 2019. The younger generations in particular indicate that they drink mineral water more often than two years ago. “Flavored water” has been on the rise since 2013 and is often seen as an alternative to soft drinks,” the Dutch Association for Soft Drinks, Waters and Juices (FWS) reports.
“Where mineral water has been part of the daily groceries in many of our neighboring countries for many years, the Netherlands now also seems to have embraced flat, sparkling and ‘flavored’ water in a bottle or pack. Last year (2019) more than 451 million liters of mineral water and ‘flavoured‘ water were sold. The year before that was even more (483 million liters) due to the extremely hot summer. “
preferably tap water
All that packaged water may be healthier than soda, but no better for the environment. A lot of transport and packaging material is involved, while in the Netherlands there is also water of great quality from the tap. Drinking tap water is therefore a lot more sustainable, also for restaurants. “Moreover, bottled water does not have to meet the strict requirements for tap water, laid down in the Water Supply Act. Tap water is therefore at least as healthy as bottled water.” (Source)
But what about dangerous substances such as medicine residues in our tap water? “It is very well purified and, unlike in other countries, no chlorine is added,” says Nicole Nijhuis, toxicologist at knowledge institute KWR, on Nu.nl. “These are concentrations that do not pose a risk to human health. The concentration of paracetamol, for example, is so low that you would have to empty an Olympic swimming pool to get one paracetamol.”
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Tap water is 50 to 500 times cheaper and 30 to 1,300 times better for the environment than bottled water.
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Spring water or tap water
Did you know that spring water is not a protected term? It is water from any source, which can also be the water supply. In fact, the quality requirements for tap water in the Netherlands are stricter than for spring water. And in Utrecht you are flushing the toilet with a well known brand of spring water.
Mineral water is a protected term. This may only come from a recognized mineral source of which the mineral composition is known. That doesn’t say anything about the quality, by the way.
Bottle your own tap water
Made Blue offers hospitality entrepreneurs the opportunity to tap their own water, cooled, filtered and sparkling. That is sustainable, healthy and beneficial. Moreover, it is the perfect base for adding syrups or cold infuses.
It is even possible to make mineral water with a water cooler connected to the water mains. By means of a special filter it is possible to add minerals to filtered tap water. In fact, you can decide for yourself which minerals should be in the water in what proportion. For this we work together with Aquablu.
On top of all this, we always provide 1000 times as much clean drinking water in developing countries and that’s a story you can share.
Clean drinking water for all
More than 700 million people still don’t have access to safe water.
We are the Made Blue Foundation and our mission is clean drinking water for all.
Will you help us achieve our mission? There are more ways to do this than you might think.
How much water should you drink?
And if you drink water, with or without flavor, how much should you drink in a day to stay healthy?
You can calculate that with this calculator and you can read all about it in our article.
Coffee and tea also contain water, right?
Do you prefer coffee or tea? Then you are indeed also consuming water, but also the side effects of these drinks.
We investigated for you why water is better for your vitality than coffee and tea.
Contribute to our mission too
You can do so in more ways than you might think.
