Abstract:

Four sources of drinking water were selected for a taste test: three bottled waters and a municipal water supply. One of the bottled waters was the overwhelming favorite in a blind taste test involving 25 people. The method used to test the water samples, as well as the results are included in the report. In addition, a brief history of the four water sources is offered, as is information on bottled water, water quality, and water safety, that may impact on a consumer’s choice of bottled water. The report also deals with the role water plays in our lifestyles and our health.

Key words: Bottled water, aquifer, spring water, Poland Spring Water, Evian Water, Glacial Mist Water, Biddeford and Saco Water Company.

Table of Contents

P.1  Executive Summary
P.2  Introduction
   Conclusions / recommendations
P.4  Overview
P.7  The choices
    · Evian
    · Poland Spring
    · Biddeford and Saco Water Company
    · Glacial Mist
P.10  Comparisons
    · Survey
    · Specifications
P.12  Health issues
P.13  Appendix
    · Bibliography
    · Glossary or terms

List of Illustrations
Table   Title                           Page No.
1           Price Comparison      10
2           Water Comparison    11A

Figure   Title                                              Page No.
1           Bottled Waters' Path to Market    6
2           Description of a Typical Aquifer    9
3           Taste Test Survey                         10A
 

Executive Summary:
    Bottled water has become a visible part of American culture in the past decade. It is seen everywhere: offices, factories, playgrounds, beaches, cars, and being carried down Main Street or along the Appalachian Trail hanging from shoulder slings.
    Bottled water is a $4 billion a year industry that relies heavily on consumers’ taste. So we put a part of the industry to the test. Three brands of readily available bottled water were selected for a taste test. Tap water from a municipal water supply was added to the project as a way of testing the image of bottled water. Twenty five people participated in the test during a two-day period, and the overwhelming choice was Poland Spring Water. The other options were Glacial Mist Water, Evian Natural Spring Water, and tap water from the Biddeford and Saco Water Company.
    For the test, the water was stored in containers that suggested all were bottled water. The containers were identified to the testers as A, B, C, and D. Poland Spring Water was the overwhelming favorite among the 25 participants in our taste test.
    In way of comparison, Poland Spring Water was the top seller of the bottled water industry in 1997 with nearly $300 million in sales. The same sales figures show that a bottled water from foreign sources - Evian - was the third largest seller in 1997, but its taste did not fare well with testers in southern Maine.
    There were a couple of interesting results from the test. Maine residents, even in a blind taste test, chose the bottled water that highlights the pristine image of Maine in its advertising and marketing. We also measured the cost of the water samples in our test, and the winner was the same. Poland Spring Water had the lowest price of the three bottled water samples purchased locally. The cost of the tap water - at the tap - was negligible.

Introduction:
    Bottled water comes in many packages, with many promises. We wanted to find one brand sold in this area that satisfies the taste of a group of Maine residents. Three brands of readily available bottled water were tested to determine the one that would be the highest rated by a randomly selected group of people from southern Maine. Also included in the test was a sample of tap water from a municipal water supply to check on the real, or imagined, appeal of bottled water.
    Bottled water is a nearly $4 billion a year industry that enjoyed a growth in 1997 of nearly 10%. Many brands of bottled water now appear on shelves in supermarkets and small convenience stores, as well as on menus in restaurants and bars. Although there may be many reasons to buy a particular brand, a consumer’s taste is often the deciding factor. For that reason we decided to conduct a blind taste test of three samples to gauge the opinions found in a random group of people.
    Three bottled water brands were chosen: Poland Spring Water, Glacial Mist, and Evian. Tap water from the Biddeford and Saco Water Company was also selected for the test as a control item that might indicate that taste is strictly in the mind of the consumer. Hundreds of brands of bottled water are on the market, but time and resources limited our test. There are a limited number of brands available within the test market - Greater Portland, and cost limited the taste test to three brands of bottled water - more brands would have made the cost prohibitive.
    Information was gathered from a number of locations, most of them on the Internet, about bottled water, sources of bottled water, and regulations dealing with the packaging and safety of bottled water. That information is included in the report, but the main point was to get the opinions of a number of Maine residents about the taste of bottled water because we felt that taste is the primary factor for the average consumer. A survey of 25 people was made during a two-day period on July 30 and 31, 1998. A table was set up in the surgical suite employee lounge at Southern Maine Medical Center in Biddeford.  Four bottles were labeled A, B, C, and D. Each contained a sample of bottled water as well as the municipal tap water. Small cups were provided for testers, and questionnaires were available for the participants: one was to be used to mark responses, the second for the completed survey. Directions were clearly displayed above the table so participants could take the test at their leisure. Twenty five hospital employees, including nurses, surgical technologists, and doctors, participated. The participants were asked to rate the water as best, good, fair, and poor.

Conclusion / Recommendation
    Maine’s own Poland Spring Water was the winner of the taste test. Poland Spring came in first in the best category and was not listed in the poor category by any of the testers. The foreign competitor, Evian, held its own in the good category, while Glacial Mist and the tap water mainly showed up in the fair and poor categories.
    Poland Spring also won in the category of cost. One liter containers of the bottled water samples were purchased at a local supermarket for the test. Poland Spring Water was the winner, easily beating Glacial Mist, and coming in at 58% of the cost of Evian.
    Our group, having conducted the taste test, compared costs, and studied the regulations dealing with bottled water, recommends Poland Spring Water to consumers. It was the choice of our taste test, and is easier on the budget than the other bottled water samples studied in this project.

Health Issues:
    Water as Medicine:
    Water may be part of a fashion statement today: a bottle carried in the car, strapped to the frame of a bike, or hung from the shoulder in a special sling. But, it is also an important part of everyday health.
    Water makes up 55-75% of the average adult's body weight. Adults are told to drink eight cups of water a day, increasing that amount when heat or exercise is involved. Three quarts of water are lost from the body each day just from breathing, elimination, and sweating.
    Americans drink nearly 2.9 billion gallons of bottled water yearly, but experts are wondering if the nation’s quest for thirst might be harmful to its dental health.  The problem is that most types of bottled water lack sufficient fluoride, the cavity-fighting mineral added in trace amounts to many municipal drinking systems. In the water that we compared for our survey, the only company that adds fluoride is the Biddeford & Saco Water Company.
    Fluoridation was born after dentists noticed in 1909 that what turned out to be naturally occurring fluoride in the water of Colorado Springs, CO, was fortifying residents’ teeth against decay. By the 1940s cities were adding fluoride to their water supplies. The results were dramatic: tooth decay dropped by between 50% and 70% in just 15 years, and Americans today have far fewer cavities. Parents can ask bottled water manufacturers for a content analysis. If there’s no naturally occurring fluoride in the bottled water, a dentist can be consulted about fluoride mouth rinses or tablets.

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