Huh: are those expensive bottles of water filled with ordinary tap water?

There’s a rumor going around about some celebs that they only want to bathe in Evian water. This water is supposedly a miracle cure for their skin and overall health. What’s wrong with tap water? Is there really a difference between it and the expensive spring water in plastic bottles? Or… Are we all being completely ripped off?

Keuringsdienst van Waarde investigated, and the result is surprising.

Spring water isn’t that special

When I hear the words ‘spring water’, I always think of glaciers and mountain streams from which water is collected (like Evian, whose logo features mountains). But did you know that the spring water sold in the Netherlands often simply comes from the Netherlands too? According to water expert Roelof Stuurman, the spring water in plastic bottles is usually rainwater that has seeped down into the soil. Dutch soil, indeed — but what does that say about the quality?

You may already see this coming, but it actually says absolutely nothing about the quality of the spring water — it’s just as good as expensive Evian or Fiji (which all the celebs in Hollywood drink these days). Dutch spring water is water that seeped into the soil as rainwater thousands of years ago and is filtered by the ground (sand and clay, for example). And it’s precisely those filters that affect the quality and taste of the water.

The difference between tap water and spring water: the price

In the Netherlands, there are various places where spring water is obtained. But companies responsible for our drinking water, in other words tap water, may also be located in those places. And yes; it all comes from the same source. So it may well be that you pay one euro for a bottle of spring water, even though it is exactly the same water you use to rinse your mouth after brushing your teeth.

And then consider that a thousand liters of tap water costs approximately one and a half euros, while a bottle of mineral water quickly costs more than one euro. Cha-ching! The difference between tap water and spring water is therefore mainly the price…

And which brands source their water from Dutch springs? Sourcy, for example — although its name might make you think it’s French — has sourced its water from Dutch springs since 1988. Bar-Le-Duc also comes from Dutch soil (Utrecht, to be precise), and therefore differs little or not at all from our ‘ordinary’ tap water.

Also read:

• Wow: this is how unhealthy water with powder or syrup really is
• Emma’s food pet peeves: water with lemon
• Why does tap water taste different everywhere in the Netherlands?

Source: Keuringsdienst van Waarde