IBWA April May 2010 - 14

Bottled Water

for much of the global expansion up until the mid-2000s, its compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.4 percent for the five-year period ending with 2009 was noticeably slower then the 5.5 percent CAGR achieved by the growth of the global market during the same period. Mexico alone accounted for 12.9 percent of the global volume with almost 6.9 billion gallons in 2009 and a marketbeating CAGR of 8.1 percent. China became the third country that could claim a double-digit share of global volume with 5.7 billion gallons, or 10.6 percent of the total. Chinese bottled water volume has enjoyed double-digit percentage growth rates for several consecutive years, registering a 12.3 percent CAGR for the period from 2004 to 2009—by far the highest rate among the 10 biggest bottled water markets. Fourth-place Brazil and sixth-place Indonesia also registered CAGRs higher than the international market’s. Europe may not boast the biggest bottled water markets, but it does have several major ones, including four of the 10 largest. However, as these are firmly established, their growth tends to be slower than those where packaged water has a less entrenched tradition. Indeed, some of the most prominent countries experienced contraction or only very slight growth. For instance, in 2009, France’s volume declined by 2.4 percent and Italy’s dropped by 4.8 percent. During the five-year period ending that year, Italy, the fifth-largest bottled water market in the world, had a CAGR of just 0.9 percent, and eighth-place Germany moved at the same pace. France, the number-eight market, declined, as did Spain, the fourth-largest European market and the tenth-biggest in world. As a group, the four leading European bottled water markets accounted for slightly more than 17 percent of the world’s total volume in 2009. In the majority of countries throughout the globe, still water accounts for the majority of sales. Sparkling water sales are strong in a minority of countries, such as Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, the Netherlands, and Germany, where sparkling water is often tied to meal-consumption practices. On a global level, sparkling water accounts for an estimated 10 percent of the total volume, with still water accounting for the remaining 90 percent. Plastic packaging is preferred over glass in almost every country, with the exception of Germany, where recycling laws make a determinative impact on packaging trends. However, even in Germany, and in other countries, such as the United Kingdom, where glass has a strong presence, PET is the most dynamic and rapidly growing segment. At about one-third of global volume, home and office delivery (HOD) —or bulk water—still accounts for a minority of global bottled water sales. Yet, it is a vital segment in many countries, such as Mexico, where it accounts for more than two-thirds of the volume. Interest from the major water players has grown recently as HOD water becomes increasingly branded. An intense context for HOD supremacy could occur in the near future. Mexico leads the world in bottled water consumption.

Average intake in Mexico jumped from 44.5 gallons in 2004 to nearly 62 gallons five years later. The former leader in average intake, Italy, consumed the equivalent of 50.7 gallons per person in 2009. Several Middle Eastern markets rank very highly in per capita bottled water consumption. With the equivalent of more than 40 gallons for each resident in 2009, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) had the third-highest level of bottled water consumption in the world. In addition to the UAE, the Middle East region has Lebanon and Saudi Arabia in the top 20 in per capita bottled water consumption. At 20 gallons per resident, Israel also consumes bottled water at a rate greater than the global average.
GLOBAL BOTTLED WATER MARKET Per Capita Consumption by Leading Countries 2004 – 2009 2009 Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Countries Mexico Italy United Arab Emirates Belgium-Luxembourg Germany France Lebanon Spain Hungary United States Slovenia Thailand Saudi Arabia Switzerland Croatia Qatar Cyprus Austria Czech Republic Hong Kong GLOBAL AVERAGE
Source: Beverage Marketing Corporation

Gallons Per Capita 2004 44.5 48.5 27.9 39.1 33.0 37.4 26.8 36.1 20.1 23.2 21.2 20.2 23.2 26.3 18.1 20.6 24.3 21.7 23.0 15.4 6.4 2009 61.9 50.7 40.1 36.7 34.5 33.8 31.8 31.4 29.3 27.6 27.1 26.4 26.4 26.0 25.6 25.5 24.5 23.5 23.3 21.9 7.9

While Europe may no longer hold the top spot in volume per capita, 12 of the top 20 bottled water consumers on a per person basis are European countries. The consumers of the combined market of Belgium-Luxembourg imbibed almost 37 gallons each. France, Germany, Spain, and Italy were the only other countries with per capita consumption greater than 30 gallons. French consumers quaffed 3.6 gallons less bottled water in 2009 than they had five years earlier. In 2009,
April/MAy 2010

IBWA April May 2010

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