Perrier ( , also , ) is a French brand of natural bottled mineral water obtained at its source in

Vergèze Vergèze (; oc, Vergesa) is a commune in the Gard department in southern France. Vergèze-Codognan station has rail connections to Nîmes, Avignon and Montpellier. Located just south-east of the commune is the production facility for Perrier, ...

, located in the

Gard Gard () is a department in Southern France, located in the region of Occitanie. It had a population of 748,437 as of 2019;département''. Perrier is known for its carbonation and its distinctive green bottle. Perrier was part of the Perrier Vittel Group SA, which became

Nestlé Waters France Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Switzerland, Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other me ...

after the acquisition of the company by Nestlé in 1992. Nestlé Waters France also includes Vittel, S.Pellegrino and

Contrex Contrex is a brand of mineral water owned since 1992 by Nestlé Waters, a branch of the Swiss group Nestlé, and is part of the ''Vittel'' mineral water company that includes Vittel and Hépar. The water, whose source is located in Contrexév ...

About

The spring from which Perrier water is sourced is naturally carbonated, but the water and natural carbon dioxide gas are obtained independently. The water is then purified, and during

bottling Bottling lines are production lines that fill a product, generally a beverage, into bottles on a large scale. Many prepared foods are also bottled, such as sauces, syrups, marinades, oils and vinegars. Beer bottling process Packaging of bottle ...

, the carbon dioxide gas is re-added so that the level of carbonation in bottled Perrier matches that of the Vergèze spring. In 1990, Perrier removed the "naturally sparkling" claim from its bottles under pressure from the United States Food and Drug Administration. Since at least 2019, Perrier water is no longer "reinforced with gas from the source" but "with the addition of carbon dioxide". According to the company, this change allows it to considerably reduce its total water consumption and reduce its ecological impact.

History

The spring in

Southern France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French language, French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi ...

from which Perrier is drawn was originally known as ''Les Bouillens'' (The Bubbles). It had been used as a

spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneoth ...

since Roman times. During 218 BC,

Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Puni ...

and his army, having passed through Spain en route to his intended conquest of Rome, decided to rest for a while at Les Bouillens, from which the men took water for refreshment. Perrier was first introduced to Britain during 1863. Local doctor Louis Perrier bought the spring in 1898 and operated a commercial spa there; he also bottled the water for sale. He later sold the spring to St John Harmsworth, a wealthy British visitor. Harmsworth was the younger brother of the newspaper magnates Lord Northcliffe and

Lord Rothermere Viscount Rothermere, of Hemsted in the county of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1919 for the press lord Harold Harmsworth, 1st Baron Harmsworth. He had already been created a baronet, of Horsey in th ...

. He had come to France to learn the language. Dr. Perrier showed him the spring, and he decided to buy it. He sold his share of the family newspapers to raise the money. Harmsworth closed the spa, as spas were becoming unfashionable. He renamed the spring ''Source Perrier'' and started bottling the water in distinctive green bottles. The shape was that of the

Indian club Indian clubs, which originated in the Indian subcontinent, are a type of exercise equipment used to present resistance in movement to develop strength and mobility. They consist of juggling club shaped wooden clubs of varying sizes and weights, ...

s which Harmsworth used for exercise. Harmsworth marketed the product in Britain at a time when Frenchness was seen as chic and aspirational to the middle classes. It was advertised as the Champagne of mineral water. (There are champagne houses by the name of

Laurent-Perrier Laurent-Perrier () is a Champagne house founded in 1812. It is the main company of the Laurent-Perrier Group, whose other flagship brands include the houses of Salon, De Castellane and Delamotte. Laurent-Perrier Group also acquired Chateau Ma ...

and Perrier-Jouët, but there is no connection.) Advertising in newspapers like the ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...

'' established the brand. For a time, 95% of sales were in Britain and the U.S. Perrier's reputation for purity suffered a blow in 1990 when a laboratory in North Carolina in the United States found benzene, a carcinogen, in several bottles. Perrier stated that it was an isolated incident of a worker having made a mistake in filtering and that the spring itself was unpolluted. The incident ultimately led to the worldwide withdrawal of the product, some 160 million bottles of Perrier. Two years later in 1992, Perrier was bought by Nestlé, one of the world's leading food and drink companies. Nestlé had to contend with competition from

the Agnelli family The Agnelli family () is an Italian multi-industry business dynasty founded by Giovanni Agnelli, one of the original founders of the Fiat motor company which became Italy's largest automobile manufacturer. They are also primarily known for other ...

for ownership of the business. In 2004, a crisis erupted when Nestlé announced a restructuring plan for Perrier. The following year, Perrier was ordered to halt restructuring due to a failure to consult adequately with staff.

Bottling

Perrier is available in 750 ml, 330 ml, and 200 ml glass bottles in Europe, as well as in 330 ml cans. In other markets, the 250 ml can is also available. Perrier bottles all have a distinctive 'teardrop' shape and are a signature green colour. In August 2001, the company introduced a new bottling format using

polyethylene terephthalate Polyethylene terephthalate (or poly(ethylene terephthalate), PET, PETE, or the obsolete PETP or PET-P), is the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in fibres for clothing, containers for liquids and foods ...

to offer Perrier in plastic, a change that was researched for 11 years to determine which material would best help retain both the water's flavour and its purported "50 million bubbles." In 2013, Perrier celebrated its 150th anniversary by launching a limited edition series of bottles inspired by Andy Warhol. In 2019, Perrier released Perrier ARTXTRA limited edition packaging featuring artwork of artist duo Dabsmyla to help support the contemporary artist community.

Varieties

Perrier comes in several flavours: Natural, Lemon, and Lime have been on the market for many years, and in 2007, Citron Lemon-Lime and Pamplemousse Rose (Pink

Grapefruit The grapefruit (''Citrus'' × ''paradisi'') is a subtropical citrus tree known for its relatively large, sour to semi-sweet, somewhat bitter fruit. The interior flesh is segmented and varies in color from pale yellow to dark pink. Grapefruit is ...

) flavours debuted in the United States. In 2015, a Green Apple flavour was launched in France as well as the US. In 2016, a Mint flavour (Saveur Menthe) was introduced in France. Since 2002, new varieties of Perrier have been introduced in France, for example, ''Eau de Perrier'' is less carbonated than the original, and comes in a blue bottle. ''Perrier Fluo'' comes in flavours such as ginger-cherry, peppermint, orange-lychee, raspberry, and ginger-lemon. In 2017, Perrier introduced two new flavours, Perrier Strawberry and Perrier Watermelon, to their existing Lime, L’Orange, Pink Grapefruit, and Green Apple flavour.

Distribution

As of January 2013, Perrier was available in 140 countries, and almost 1 billion bottles are sold every year.

The Perrier Awards

From 1981 to 2005, the company sponsored an annual comedy award in the United Kingdom, the Perrier Comedy Award, also known as "''The Perriers''". It was described as a means of supporting young comedic talent at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

, an arts festival touted as "the world's largest". Initially for comedy reviews, by 1987 this included a standup comedian award. The award's sponsorship was taken over by various other advertisers starting in 2006 with commensurate renaming, and it eventually came to be called the Edinburgh Comedy Awards. The Perrier Young Jazz Awards were set up by Perrier in 1998, though never attained the success and recognition of their longer running comedy equivalent. The awards ran for four years, releasing an album showcasing its winners each year, before being discontinued. The last year the awards ceremony ran was 2001.

Notes

External links

* {{Authority control 1898 establishments in France Bottled water brands Carbonated water French drinks Mineral water French brands Nestlé brands Soft drinks Jazz awards Youth music competitions Awards established in 1998 Awards disestablished in 2001