Nestlé Waters dedicates $130m to regenerate local water cycles

Nestlé Waters has announced an investment of CHF 120 million (approximately $130 million) to implement more than 100 projects that aim to advance the regeneration of local water cycles.

The solutions are designed to help regenerate the ecosystems in the areas around each of the company’s 48 sites by 2025.

As part of its commitment, Nestlé Waters will work with local water users, communities, partners and global experts to identify, develop and progress projects specific to current and future shared water challenges. The company says its work will be tailored to individual locations, needs and issues, and will go beyond its own operations.

Nestlé Waters’ recent initiative builds on its 2017 commitment to certify all of its water and bottling sites by the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) – which aims to promote responsible water use – by 2025. As of the same year, the business says it will help nature retain more water than it uses in its operations.

These measurable actions will support better water management and infrastructure. Projects include land conservation and natural flood management interventions at its Buxton site, UK; and river restoration and renaturation projects for its Vittel bottled water site in Vosges, France.

Meanwhile, Nestlé Waters will also support farmers to use drip irrigation in Sheikhupura, Pakistan; and will focus on the delivery of water treatment, filtration and pipeline infrastructure for the municipal water supply in Benha, Egypt.

Cédric Egger, head of sustainability at Nestlé Waters, added: “As a business with a long heritage of nature protection and water stewardship, we want to go beyond the conservation of water sources to help regenerate and restore water cycles in the areas where we operate.

“We know the water challenge is global, but it can only be tackled through local solutions. Now is the time to expand the scope of our actions. With Nestlé’s presence around the world, we can learn from our many partners and contribute to solving the water challenges in the locations near our operations.”