High-quality bottled water solutions for access to safe water
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that around 2.2 billion people are living without access to safe water. One of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals states that every inhabitant should have access to 20 litres of water per day and within a 15-minute walk. Sidel helps to meet this UN goal by supplying high-quality bottled water solutions.
With more than 40 years of experience, Sidel offers solutions for producing high-quality bottled water with minimal environmental and cost impact. Sustainable bottled water production requires the utmost attention to hygienic conditions and product quality, as well as appealing bottle design to win on the shelves, as consumers demand unique bottle shapes with a premium look and feel that exceeds the quality of tap water. At the same time, bottle lightweighting is needed to reduce the environmental impact and cost of bottling operations and transportation.
An extremely light bottle
A good example is X-LITE™ Still – Sidel’s latest innovative 500ml PET packaging solution for non-pressurised still water.
“Thanks to its extremely light industrial bottle design, it is the most cost-effective and sustainable packaging available on the market. This pioneering solution addresses the still water market for small size PET bottles, in particular producers looking to optimise their packaging and production costs,” says Vincent Le Guen, Vice President Packaging at Sidel.
Health benefits
“The health benefits of mineral water are another asset, as thanks to our packaging solutions and equipment designs, bottled spring water, for example, can be transported safely even to more remote regions,” adds Francesca Bellucci, Sustainability Portfolio Director at Sidel. “PET allows optimum distribution while minimising environmental impact, especially with the increasing incorporation of post-consumer recycled PET. This is why PET is used for almost all bottled water containers.”
Tap or bottled water: the wrong debate
There is no doubt that water networks are needed for home consumption, sanitary facilities, farming and industries. In several developed countries, we have the luxury of potable tap water, but this is far from the case everywhere. Water and sewage networks are capital and maintenance intensive. They also generate huge losses, as even the best-in-class water distribution networks leak at least 20 per cent of what they deliver. Considering that drinking water represents only about 1/1000 of the many uses water is put to, it makes sense to deliver high-quality potable water in bottles, especially where it is scarce.
Sidel helps Mexican company to deliver food to the local market
Oleofinos, a Mexican company manufacturing fats, oils and soaps recently selected Sidel’s Synergy blow moulder as the most efficient solution for producing its own bottles and meeting increasing local market demand. By choosing Sidel’s equipment, Oleofinos could overcome the challenges of long-distance transportation and deliver edible oil to the local market.
Oleofinos, which was founded in 1978 and is part of the Oleomex Group, has developed its own vegetable oil brands such as Olein oil and Aceite Hogar. In 2015, the oil producer started its bottle filling operations at the Chinameca plant in Veracruz. The company ran into problems in transporting the bottles from Guadalajara to Veracruz, and from Mexico City to Veracruz. In 2019, demand increased in the south-eastern
region of Mexico, and with long distance transportation, the company needed to reduce costs.
As a solution, Oleofinos bought Sidel’s Synergy equipment for blow moulding in February 2022, which allows the Mexican oil producer to make its own bottles. The machine has a capacity of 4,800 bottles per hour, and requires limited labour and a compact installation space. In addition, it has low energy consumption.
“Sidel has built our confidence in the ability to deliver on time, and in general for their excellent aftersales service, regular communication, and meeting our needs for spare parts,” says Nahúm Antonio Chávez, Operations Manager of the Oleofinos Chinameca Plant.
In 2023, Oleofinos plans to increase its bottle packaging capacity by 50 per cent to meet the growing demand from its customers.
