Bottled water will see an increase in its price. The Senate is considering increasing VAT and this will have serious repercussions.
Water is essential to life and its consumption is vital for the body. But faced with the Senate's desire to increase VAT on bottled water, tap water could be preferred.
Is bottled water safe to drink?
Should we continue to buy bottled water? Water bottles, practical and easy to be found in supermarkets, offer us the benefits of natural mineral water.
However, they can also be real enemies for health. This is because single-use plastic bottles are made from a semi-liquid mixture of propylene and ethylene. Industrially molded, filled and labeled.
This manufacturing process creates a problem. Of many bottles of water contain microparticles of plastic, which are then found in the water they are supposed to contain.
Indeed, according to a study by the Agir pour l’environnement association published in July 2022seven out of nine water bottles are contaminated by microplastics. This represents 78% of bottled water.
Including those from very popular brands. The bottles of water that you buy regularly could be contaminated, because according to revelations from Le Monde and Franceinfo, reports from ANSES are worrying.
They indicate that 30% of bottled water brands used prohibited treatments. And that all Nestlé brands are singled out for non-compliance with health standards.
Brands to avoid
Among the brands concerned are Perrier, Vittel, Hépar and Contrex. Although the consumption of these waters does not present any immediate danger, it is recommended to remain vigilant.
ANSES therefore recommends intensifying the factory monitoring of Nestlé due to contamination of fecal origin. And the regular presence of micropollutants.
In addition to microplastic contamination, water bottles promote proliferation of bacteria. Once opened, they quickly become a breeding ground for microbes.
It is therefore advisable to consume these bottles within 24 to 48 hours after opening. What about tap water? In comparison, tap water, although sometimes frowned upon, is a safe alternative.
Highly monitored in France, it therefore presents less risk for health. If you find its chlorine taste unpleasant, simply let it sit for a while in the open air or in the refrigerator.
Moreover, bottled water could see its prices rise. During the night from Wednesday to Thursday, the Senate voted in favor of an increase in VAT on bottled water, a measure aimed at encourage consumers prefer tap water.
Bottled water subject to new taxes
This system was therefore adopted by show of hands as part of the 2025 draft budget, against the government's opinion. “In a context where the management of natural resources, corporate responsibility and ecological issues are at the center of discussions, it has become necessary to re-examine this tax policy”declared the socialist Hervé Gillé.
The latter claimed to defend this measure in the face of concerns raised by the Nestlé Waters scandal. In January, the subsidiary of the Swiss agri-food giant admitted to having used systems disinfection prohibited.
And this, to guarantee the food security of its mineral waters. This position follows media revelations which shed light on the practices of industrialists in the sector, leading the Senate to create a commission of inquiry this fall.
To examine, among other things, the use of processes filtration prohibited. The amendment, carried by Macronist senator Nadège Havet, proposes to remove the reduced VAT rate of 5.5% applied to plastic bottled water to bring it to 20%.
However, bottled waters sold overseas would be exempt of this measurement. Senators estimate that this reform could generate between 150 and 300 million euros in additional revenue each year.
The minister Public AccountsLaurent Saint-Martin, vetoed this proposal, judging that VAT was not “not an incentive tax instrument”. To be continued…
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