MOM's Sparks a Bottled-vs.-Tap-Water Debate

MOM's Sparks a Bottled-vs.-Tap-Water Debate

In the Checkout Blog the other day, staff writer Annys Shin reported that MOM's markets had decided to stop selling imported bottled water. The Rockville company, My Organic Market, has five stores in the Washington area.

The grocery chain cited questions being raised about the impact of bottled water on communities and the environment. "Once we thought about the amount of energy, oil and water that go into producing, shipping, and disposing of a product that is readily available by simply turning on your faucet, we knew it was the right decision," Lisa de Lima, a MOM's vice president, said in a statement on the company's Web site. The retailer hopes customers who aren't already drinking from the tap will make the switch, de Lima said.

Readers responded to the company's move by sharing their thoughts on the bottled-vs.-tap-water debate. Here are a few excerpts from the comments:

I shop at MOMs in Alexandria, and if they think I'm going to drink tap water, they have another thing coming. I can easily shift my business over to Whole Foods, which has a more pragmatic approach to serving its customers' needs. . . . Note: MOMs has its own brand of bottled water -- it's just filtered, not spring. Hmmmmmm . . .

-- Pinky {vbar} August 21, 2008 9:02 AM

I drink bottled water sometimes. I only drink tap water at home, however. The thing with reusable bottles is you use a lot of tap water and some gas/electricity to thoroughly clean them out after each use. Some of them can go in the dishwasher, but the ones that can't need to be hand-washed after every use. To wash things properly, you need hot soapy water. You use way more than 16.9 oz of water to clean out a re-useable bottle. When you drink bottled water, you drink the 16.9 oz and are done with it!

-- LBH219 {vbar} August 21, 2008 12:43 PM

I live and work in D.C. and drink Brita-ed water at home, bottled Deer Park spring water at work (we use the 5-gallon bottles which are recycled). The only time I purchase single-serving bottles of water is when I'm traveling. Since I can't take my liquids through security, I'll pick up an overpriced bottle once I'm near my gate. My favorite water is the stuff that comes from my mother's artesian well -- cold, clean water straight from Mother Nature!

-- H2O Lover {vbar} August 21, 2008 2:05 PM

We have given up buying bottled water. I bought each member of the family a Sigg bottle, and we fill them from the filtered water out of the fridge before we head out. There have been occasional times when we're out when I buy bottled water with a meal, but I try not to. Good for MOM's.

-- WorkingMomX {vbar} August 21, 2008 2:12 PM

For more from The Checkout, go tohttp://voices.washingtonpost.com/thecheckout