Danone has recently faced growing public scrutiny over its water sourcing for Aqua, Indonesia’s leading bottled water brand.
Consumer watchdog, National Consumer Protection Agency (BPKN) has unveiled plan to summon the company’s local subsidiary, PT Tirta Investama to seek clarification on whether its products truly come from mountain springs, following claims over its use of groundwater wells.
Vera Galuh Sugijanto, Vice President and General Secretary of Danone Indonesia, said Aqua’s water is indeed sourced from mountain springs, consistent with the claim printed on its label, but explained that the extraction is carried out through regulated deep-well drilling.
Vera explained, “The source is mountain water, as stated on our label. However, like any industry utilizing deep groundwater, the extraction is done through drilling.” The company holds the necessary permits from the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry for its water extraction operations. All Aqua products meet the Indonesian National Standard (SNI) and comply with safety requirements set by the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM). She added, “Aqua’s bottled water meets SNI parameters, and we go beyond that with over 400 internal parameters to ensure quality consistency across all our plants.”
BPKN chairman Mufti Mubarok said the agency received multiple public complaints and media reports after West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi visited Aqua’s water processing site in Subang and questioned its water source. He later explained that BPKN had obtained a technical explanation from Aqua, which stated that the company uses deep drilling to extract water from mountain aquifers.
BPKN has separately conducted an on-site inspection at Aqua’s production plant to verify the company’s explanation and compare it with actual operations. The visit will also include laboratory testing to assess the quality of the water extracted through drilling.
BPKN has recommended Aqua to revise the ‘mountain spring water’ label on its packaging and advertising to better reflect its extraction process and prevent potential ‘overclaims’. According to BPKN, a modification of the label would help align public perception with actual practice.
