Is the bottled water market declining?

I agree that the market is turning; however, if the bottle water industry thinks that the anti bottle movement is dead we are only kidding ourselves. Yes, lighter plastic is helping; however, one other factor is the use of alternative plastics that are more “earth friendly.” I’m talking about compostable, degradable and ENSO biodegradable plastic bottles that have recently come to market. Most consumers can’t see that having a lighter bottle is saving much or helping the environment, which it is. The complaints that I’ve heard is that the bottles are so thin that if one isn’t careful you can easily cause the water to shoot from the container. Consumers are looking for something that will make them feel less guilty about purchasing water. They want the convenience of having a fresh tasting, portable, healthy drink that water provides. Consumers still need and want bottled water, now all the bottle water industry needs to do is provide them with a real solution for eliminating plastic bottle pollution.

Max

You say bottlers are "working hard to reduce their environmental impact?" They are doing it for green reasons, but the green is money saved, not enviro-green. It won't impact the anti-bottle people, who will oppose the small PET bottles any way they can, including confusing them with polycarbonate and pointing to the Great Plastic Vortex in the Pacific (PET sinks).
Bah, Humbug!

It is clear that the bottled water industry as a whole is struggling and for good reasons. They sell a product that doesn't make sense.

Whether it's for home use or on the go, a good water filter and a reusable water bottle offers much higher quality, 1/10 the cost or less, much more convenience and without the tragic environmental impact of the 60 million plastic bottles going into U.S. landfills EVERY DAY in America.

People are just getting smarter about this issue and it's a healthy evolution for people to bottle their own with home water filters. It's better for our health and better for the health of our planet.

The bottled water industry is facing difficult times the easy double digit growth of prior years has disappeared only 2% growth last year, and a decline is predicted for this year, and the backlash against bottling something that comes out you of your faucet is growing.

I think there's no problem if the bottled water industry will decline. I, myself, is not a "fan" of bottled water. It's because it's not safe to drink anymore. Been using water filter for years already and I feel secured with the water I am drinking/using.