It is a causal link after all logical but whose magnitude is unusual. Although the heat wave has already occurred several times in France this summer, the French have not skimped on the consumption of bottles of mineral water. According to an article in Les Echos, sales of these products have thus increased by 20% in Monoprix stores and even 50% in Franprix stores… all this in the month of July alone. The global increase amounts to 16.5% compared to July 2021.
“The day of the heat wave on June 18 is the one in which natural flat waters have generated more turnover for at least 3 years with 9 million euros in one day,” explains Nielsen in figures that BFM Business has been able to consult. . The group of studies specialized in consumption and distribution adds that “natural still waters have been the 2nd fastest growing category since the beginning of 2022, with 45 million more units, only behind soft drinks” thanks, in particular, to a sectoral increase of almost 20% since mid-June.
Less exposed reserves
Such figures could be a source of concern regarding the supply capacities of the brands, which are limited by the quotas established by the suppliers. In fact, the stores anticipate these heat peaks by building reserves of mineral water.
However, the stresses appear upstream of the final stage of distribution. In fact, the regional prefects determine the volumes of water extracted each year. However, the climatic context encourages some to tighten the screw, although the production of mineral water is less exposed to high temperatures. And for good reason, it takes place in reservoirs much deeper than the water tables used by farmers and public networks.
Current groundwater level is not critical
Les Echos indicate that the Union of Spring Waters and Natural Mineral Waters (SESEMN) has asked the Minister for the Ecological Transition, Christophe Béchu, to encourage him “not to slow down the activity for a product in great demand.”
Because mineral water reserves are deeper, they also take much longer to fill than groundwater. For example, Evian has to wait about ten years to exploit the water it captures due to the impermeability of the Savoy soils. Invited to the set of BFM Business on Thursday, Antoine Cardon, general delegate of SESEMN, put the situation in perspective: “Today there is no drop in the level of our water tables. […] It’s out of the question to go and take more than the tablecloth has to offer.”
A downward trend in mineral water withdrawals
These practical realities do not prevent large producer groups such as Nestlé and Danone from orienting their strategy towards reducing water withdrawal. “We are working on the sustainability of natural resources, in particular by optimizing and reducing our water withdrawals,” mentions the first on his site. The second maintains a similar speech with the newspaper: “For several years we have been working in favor of a reasoned and sustainable management of the resource, relying in particular on the experience of hydrogeologists.”
At the level of the fifty brands that exist in France, some have already acted in this direction, such as Vittel, which has reduced its taxes by 22% in the last decade, compared to state authorizations. For its part, the Société des Eaux de Volvic has the right to extract 2,500 million liters of the 11 that the Volvic basin contains, while the parent company Danone plans to reduce its extractions by between 5% and 10% in the event of a drought. alert.
Source: BFM TV
