Nestle introduces zinc-fortified bottled water

By: Chioma Umeha

In furtherance to its food fortification initiative Nestle,  at the weekend in Lagos, launched  its Nestle Pure Life Protect, a variant of its bottled water brand, Nestle Pure Life Water which is fortified with zinc. 

Speaking on the occasion, the MD, Nestle, Darnesh Gordhon, noted that Nigeria has challenges of water supply and added that the introduction of the Nestle Pure Life Protect was in recognition that good hydration is at the core of healthy lifestyle. “We believe strongly that good hydration is at the heart of healthy lifestyle. We also believe that when it comes to hydration, bottled water is the healthiest packaged beverage due to its absence of calories, controlled origins, taste and convenience,” he said, adding that Gordhon who said the new product was a demonstration of the company’s commitment to create innovative healthy hydration solutions in Nigeria, reiterated Nestle’s commitment to responsible water management through its value chains. 

Photo: L-R: Commercial Manager, Nestle Nigeria plc, Mr. Anup Srivastava; Factory Manager Flowergate, Mr. Basile Kouamen; Country Business Manager, Nestle Waters, Mr. Adewale Ojo; Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Dhamesh Gordhon; Head of Nutrition, Lagos State Ministry of Health, Dr. Abimbola Ajayi and the Marketing Services Director, Nestle Nigeria Plc, at the launch of Nestle Pure Life Protect, held at Darlington Hall, Ilupeju, Lagos… recently
 The MD said that his company is leading in water resource management and excelling in the direct
reduction of the direct water use in all its facilities, adding; “Our goal is to be
the most efficient water user among food manufacturers in Nigeria.” He also said that observed that his company ensures effective treatment of the water it discharges, by setting strict targets for returning clean water to the environment and engages with suppliers, especially those in agriculture. Gordhon also said that Nestles ensures effective treatment by helping to improve their water management with focus on impacts
at watershed level and raise awareness of water access and conservation; engaging employees, communities and consumers in the water
imperative. He added: “bottled water and healthy family hydration” is the goal of his organisation. 

Also speaking at the launch, the Country Business Manager of Nestle Water, Adewale Ojo, who note that Nigeria has been identified as a market with moderate risk of zinc deficiency said the new addition to nestle product portfolio would help Nigerians make up for the identified deficiency in zinc. Ojo also said that the New Nestle pure life Protect which contains 2.3 mg of zinc was a result of market research. “This product was tested among various groups of consumers and the result we received necessitated the introduction of the product,” he said. He pledged his organisation commitment to ensure provision of quality drinking water with the right balance of essential minerals. 

His words: “Our commitment to Creating Shared Value and our principle-based approach to running our business stand front-and-center as we pursue our objective of being the reference for financial performance in our industry, because we want to achieve this while also being trusted by all stakeholders. “This, we have passionately demonstrated when we Launched Water Education for primary school teachers in October 2012 with its pilot implementation phase in three LGAs in Lagos, and now as I speak, we are teaching Water Education in five LGAs in Lagos with a plan to roll out to more states.” “In Nestle, we are committed to delivering innovative products that will meet the expectations of the Nigerian consumers and without any iota of doubt,” Ojo said.

This story was published in Newswatch Times on November 2,  2013.

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