How much is the bottled water industry worth?

The bottling and selling of water could be thought of as one of the simplest yet most lucrative ideas in retail marketing. It was during the 19th century that saw the commercialization of bottled water as we know it today.

Bathing and drinking mineral water really took off amid the fashionable sets who flocked to spring resorts in Saratoga, New York, White Sulphur Springs in what is now West Virginia and the Poland Spring in Maine. These natural waters were purported to remedy a wide range of ailments.

With developments in technology and industry, mass bottling of spring water really came into its own, with the general consensus being that bottled spring and mineral waters were safer than municipal offerings during a time when water-borne diseases were commonplace and lethal, particularly cholera and dysentery.

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Since the patenting of Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles in 1973, the bottled water market started on an upward trajectory that continues to this day.

Just how much is the bottled water industry worth today?

In 2016, bottled water became America's No.1 packed beverage, overtaking carbonated soft drinks (soda). Preliminary figures from the Beverage Marketing Corporation's report (BMC) show that bottled water continued to outsell (by volume) carbonated soft drinks for the fourth year in a row.

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The gap between carbonated soft drinks and bottled water continues to substantially widen. This data represents the shift in consumer consciousness, as the general public turns away from unhealthy, sugary drinks and to better choices in hydration.

Along with the health benefits of water, one of the key selling points of bottled H2O is the convenience of availability, carrying and size options.

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According to data from the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA), In 2019, each American consumed, on average, 43 gallons of bottled water. And that same year, the US produced 14.3 billion gallons of bottled water, an increase of 3.6 percent on the previous year.

Revenue from the sales of bottled water amounts to $61.326 million in 2020 so far. The market is expected to grow annually by 10.9 percent ( 2020-2023, CAGR).

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According to a report published by Allied Market Research, the global Bottled Water Market was estimated to be worth $169.8 billion in 2015 and is expected to hit $319.8 billion in 2022.