Bottled water giant slapped with lawsuit over 'false and deceptive' ads: 'Consumers deserve the truth'

Fiji Water was sued in the District of Columbia for its marketing tactics.

What's happening?

On Jan. 31, the Plastic Pollution Coalition alleged that the industry giant violated the district's Consumer Protection Procedures Act with "false and deceptive marketing," according to a news release.

"The Wonderful Company, LLC and Fiji Water, LLC promote Fiji Water as 'natural artesian water,' 'protected from external elements,' and 'untouched,' despite test results revealing that these products contain health-harming microplastics and plastic chemical bisphenol-A, and the companies' roles in creating plastic pollution," the nonprofit stated.

The lawsuit also argued that Fiji's claim to support a circular economy is false, as the business inherently creates plastic pollution. It asked for a ruling that declares the advertisements unlawful and an injunction to halt the practice.

"Marketing bottled water in ways that portray it as healthy, safe, and sustainable is misleading to consumers," Plastic Pollution Coalition co-founder and managing director Julia Cohen said. "… There is nothing natural about plastic."

Earth Island Institute general counsel Scott Hochberg added: "Truth in advertising matters. Microplastics and BPA are neither natural nor healthy, and consumers deserve the truth about the products they consume. We will continue to hold companies like The Wonderful Company and Fiji Water accountable for claims that contradict the true impacts of their products on our health and the environment."

Why is this important?

The Plastic Pollution Coalition said plastic pollution is creating human health problems, contaminating drinking water and the environment, and perpetuating injustice in low-income communities, rural communities, and communities of color as well as the Global South.

The organization, an Earth Island Institute project, pointed out that microplastics have been linked to fertility problems, heart attacks, strokes, neurodegenerative disorders, death, and more.

"BPA and other bisphenols, which are added to plastics to increase their rigidity, are known to disrupt the human endocrine (hormone) systems and have been identified as among the most concerning of the more than 16,000 chemicals that are added to plastics," it stated.

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What's being done about plastic pollution?

The lawsuit is one way to address the problem of plastic pollution in addition to the false promise of plastic recycling, which the group said was another tactic used by Fiji.

The company touts reducing plastic waste, using recycled material, and 100% recycled plastic packaging; the release stated that "plastic is not designed to be recycled" and is usually never recycled but instead sent to landfills, burned, or shipped overseas, meaning more plastic has to be produced and driving the cycle of pollution and environmental injustice.

Fiji is also owned by the Resnick family, which has been in the headlines often for owning 57% of the rights to the Kern Water Bank, a water reserve near Los Angeles that contains nearly 500 billion gallons of water.

There have been talks about a global plastic pollution treaty, though stakeholders can't agree on how to move forward. Other methods to combat the problem include litter booms and scientific developments that break down plastics.

Individuals can help by using less plastic: switch to a reusable water bottle, turn to reusable grocery bags, and invest in a set of glass food containers.

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