"After the Rape...", Fake Perrier Advertising by the French Magazine Hara-Kiri, 1970s

From these humble origins, the European bottled water market grew to represent a $39.3 billion segment of the market. Individual European countries often top the list of consumers with 4 of the 10 largest bottled water markets and 13 of the 20 top per capita volume of bottled water consumption. Although some countries, such as Germany and the Netherlands, purchase a high volume of sparkling water which can be categorized separately from still water, the majority of the market share is still comprised of natural water. This begs the question whether bottled water is simply a trend, as in the United States, or a necessity.

Medicine or Water? "Cures Gout, Stomach, Urine, Bladder and Kidney Ailments", Germany Mineral Water Advertising

Beneath the calm shores of European bodies of water, lies a history of industrialization, pollution, and pesticide usage that calls water quality into question. Following scrutiny in the 1960s and 70s, the quality of European tap water became the focus of E.U. and national policies, with countries such as Germany taking the lead in cleaning some of the remnants of industrial and agricultural pollution. However, not all countries have adopted strict guidelines to protect their water sources and many Eastern European countries lack adequate monitoring and compliance mechanisms.

PET, or polyethylene terephthalate, is the most commonly used material for water bottles with 82.4% of water bottle packages made from it. Some plus sides of PET is that it can be recycled and reused indefinitely, but the most problematic aspect of bottled water is the disposal of the empty bottle. The materials cycle encompassing the production, use, and disposal of the product is often unaccounted for when considering the environmental impact of products. The American case against bottled water is mainly contingent upon the lack of adequate recycling and fact that most bottled water containers wind up in landfills after use. The case in most European countries is often different, as there is a greater emphasis on recycling than currently in place in the U.S.

Vittel Advertising, 1905, Courtesy of Fab Frog

Does this mean that bottled water is less environmentally harmful in Europe than in the U.S.? Not at all. The fact is that many European countries often have pre-existing recycling infrastructure in place and recycling is more ingrained in the habits of consumers. Additionally, the distance that bottled water has to travel to reach its final destination is unaccounted for in this article, but an important aspect of this issue. Tap water from a reusable container is the most environmentally conscious choice, but as water quality is variable and based on location the best choice is to get information before drinking tap water.

Perrrier Advertising, Courtesy of FFFFOUND

Tap water in a reusable container, when safe and available, is the best choice regardless of where you live. The key is to inform yourself about water quality in the area whether at home or traveling and unsure of the quality of tap water. Usually countries in Western Europe have good quality tap water, but be aware that the quality in Eastern Europe is often lower. If buying bottled water then try to buy as local as possible and find out where to recycle the used bottle. This will ensure the least harmful environmental impact, while giving you the ability to choose the best option for the area.

Further Reading:’

The Water Information System for Europe

European Federation of Bottled Waters

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Water is an everyday part of our lives that we often take for granted, we wash and cook with it without a second thought. Yet, potable water – water that is safe to drink – is a source of regional conflict as several of the world’s most conflict-prone regions, the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa, are plagued by water shortages and drought – the UN estimates that 35 – 50 percent of urban dwellers in Africa and Asia struggle to access potable water.

BOTTLED WATER

While developing countries struggle with sourcing clean drinking water, in the United States and Europe water has become a sought after commodity and surprisingly lucrative natural resource in the form of bottled water. Marketing has promoted the dissemination of pristine imagery associated with drinking bottled water. Images conjured include landscapes untouched and unspoiled by modernity with flowing glacial streams that companies bottle and present to consumers at a “reasonable” price. Today Americans drink twice the amount of bottled water that they did 10 years ago.

But bottled water is experiencing a backlash, as more people become aware of the health and environmental concerns. Where does the water we buy at the corner store actually come from and is it as “pure” as marketers would have us believe? A recent study conducted by the Environmental Working Group found that only 2 out of 188 bottled water companies disclosed both the source and treatment procedures for their water.

This highlights one of the main differences between tap and bottled water, which is who regulates and tests it. Tap water is monitored by the Environmental Protection Agency, while bottled water comes under the jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration. The requirements for testing bottled water are relatively lax – water only undergoes testing once per quarter as opposed to tap water, which is checked for quality several times per day.

Some bottled water companies use bottles that are made with a chemical called bisphenol A (BPA), which can leach into the water and has been associated with increased risk of cancer, thyroid disorders, neurological disorders, and other diseases. In 2004, the FDA discovered that there were unusually high levels of bromate, a chemical believed to cause cancer, in Dasani water.

Aside from health issues, there is also the question of energy and waste produced by consuming bottled water. In many cases, bottled water contains embodied energy from production and shipping. Although figures vary based on the location of the water source, millions of gallons of gasoline are used in transporting bottled water.

And what happens when the water bottle is used? In America, there are no deposits for bottled water, and 90% of all water bottles consumed wind up in landfills, with only the remaining 10% being recycled. This leads to a massive amount of garbage and wasted energy.

TAP WATER

Many have chosen to plunge into the world of bottled water because of a preconceived notion that tap water is unsafe or unhealthy to drink. Tap water has gotten a bad rap in the past due to water fluoridation,  the presence of unsafe chemicals such as chlorine, and other contamination scares and conspiracy theories.

City of Toronto Drinking Water Campaign, 2005

A Gallup poll conducted in 2009 shows that pollution of drinking water remains the most pressing environmental concern for a majority of Americans. Drinking water is an incredibly localized concern, because water source and quality is highly variable based on location. A study from the Environmental Working Group revealed that the quality of tap water in several states was contaminated with agricultural pollutants mainly from manure and fertilizer run-off, industrial chemicals from factory discharges and consumer products, and byproducts of water treatment processes that leach from pipes. These statistics are alarming, but again, are highly localized, and the majority of tap water is relatively safe. However, it is important to research the water quality where you live. (See the EPA’s “Water Quality Where You Live” Guide)

FILTRATION

The best solution to the problems associated with both bottled and tap water is a home filtration system. Experts recommend researching the quality of water in your area, then choosing a filtration system. Filters can remove the vast majority of the contaminants present in tap water, and do not have the negative (and costly) side-effects of bottled water. Click here to read the April 2010 Consumer Reports guide to Water Filtration Systems.

Poland Water Bottling Plant

FURTHER READING:

Peter Gleick. Bottled and Sold: The Story Behind Our Obsession with Bottled Water, Island Press, 2010.

Terry Tamminen. “Review: Water: The Fate of Our Most Precious Resource”, Grist. January 9, 2001.

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Carboard Container Advertising 1942

A LITTLE WAVE OF HISTORY

Long before cardboard played house, it played a role in the Industrial Revolution, when the increase in manufactured products signaled a change in the nature of the consumer market. As demand for goods increased, so did the need for a lighter means to transport them. Still, we owe the creation of cardboard and its many uses to a series of small design changes.

Folded Corrugated Carboard Box

It all started when a new process enabled flimsy sheets of paper to be crimped into repeated undulating pattern, creating more rigid, stronger material for packaging fragile goods. Later, in 1856, Edward C. Haley filed a patent on “undulated paper,” finding it useful as a liner for tall hats. Another patent for corrugated cardboard was introduced in 1871, when Albert Jones of New York added a single liner sheet to one side of the undulated paper. This addition would make it more suitable as a wrapping material for Jones’ bottles and glass lanterns. Three years later, G. Smyth invented the first machine for producing large quantities of corrugated cardboard, and yet another gentleman named Oliver Long added liner sheets to both sides. This material is corrugated cardboard as we know it today.

Cardboard Eggholder Patent 1877

A Brooklyn printer and paper-bag maker named Robert Gair can be thanked for boxing it up. In 1890, he invented a carton made of pre-cut flat pieces. Gair’s creation (as with many other innovations) was the result of a happy accident; while he was printing an order of bags, a metal ruler used for creasing shifted in position and cut through the paper. Gair discovered that by simply cutting and creasing cardboard as well, he could make boxes in large quantities.

SEVERAL STRONG POINTS

A little structural engineering goes a long way, it seems. The secret to the strength of cardboard is all in that wave of fluting sandwiched between the flat liner boards and glued together, usually with cornstarch and some chemicals. When used in packaging, stacking boxes so that the flutes line up in the vertical direction greatly increases its strength potential. (It’s even possible to stand on a vertically stacked box, though that same box on its side will collapse.) Still, 70% of its strength is found in the corners of each box, making squarely stacked cartons incredibly strong.

Carboard Box Corner: 70% of the Strength

Cardboard that is used for shipping is tested and rated using two standardized measures. One is the Edge Crush Test (ECT), which determines how well a box will hold up during stacking and is measured in pounds per square inch (psi). The Burst Strength Test (BST) or Mullen Test indicates how much weight a box can hold without failing. Both ratings can be found stamped on one of the bottom flaps of corrugated cardboard boxes in the Box Manufacturer’s Certificate. Higher numbers indicate sturdier boxes.

Stamp on Corrugated Cardboard Box

THE DARK, TOXIC TRUTH

As so often with large production processes that make our lives a bit easier, the manufacturing of cardboard has a dark side. The most obvious danger lies in the unchecked harvesting of pine for paper pulp. The second is even more troubling.

In the nineteenth century, a chemical pulping process was developed that allowed wood (in this case, pine) to be turned into a soluble pulp for strong, relatively long-lasting paper. This chemical pulping is still used, removing all the parts of the wood which are not cellulose. Lignin, a carbohydrate that cements adjacent wood cells together, is taken out in this process.

Originally, wood pulp was cooked in lye alone, but this produced a rather weak paper. The addition of sodium sulfide to the pulp produced a much stronger paper. This process is called the kraft process (from the German word for strong.) About 80% of this kraft pulp is wood and the remaining 20% consists of lye and sodium sulfide. The pulp is cooked, or digested, at 338 degrees Fahrenheit for three hours until most of the lignin is made soluble. The liquid is then drained off and the pulp is washed to remove the chemicals.

The result: a pulp that is dark brown in color. Corrugated cardboard and grocery bags are both made from this kind of paper. (If white paper is desired, the pulp must be bleached.)

The problem with the kraft process is what remains; this black liquid contains lye, soda ash, sodium sulfide, and lignin. In the past, this would have been discharged directly into a lake or river, causing significant water pollution. Today, economical production of kraft paper relies on the recycling of these components in a furnace.

The problem of air quality around kraft paper mills is a continuing one and efforts to reduce emissions are costly to the mills, but many are making it a priority to make the process more efficient. More and more manufacturers use recycled cardboard. For those that do not, there has been a growing number of paper mills that have at least been using FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified sources. With the demand for more conscious production, these manufacturers will hopefully meet new strict standards.

Printing on Cardboard Box

HIGH DESIGN

Besides being used to ship product, the versatility of cardboard makes it a perfect candidate for use in design. In the past 40 years, a number of high profile designers and architects began experimenting with cardboard as an alternative to  traditional building materials, using it in shelters and furniture. In 1972, L.A. architect Frank Gehry designed his famous “wiggle chair” completely out of cardboard, and his design continues to sell over thirty years later. In 1995, Japanese architect Shigeru Ban used columns of cardboard tubes in the Takatori Kyokai Church in Kobe, Japan; he later used them in his UN design for refugee shelters in Rwanda in 1999 and in the stunningly beautiful Japan Pavilion in Hannover, Germany for Expo 2000. Most of all, these designs focused on the innovation of non-traditional materials, creating a new set of possibilities.

Cardboard Art: Claude Closky, 'All the ways to close a cardboard box', 1989 / Image Found on closky.info

HANDLE WITH CARE

It goes to show that simple materials such as cardboard can be strong, playful, serious, versatile, and even aesthetically pleasing all at once. Who of us hasn’t used a box as a playhouse during childhood? Moved her entire life’s possessions to a new home in a bunch of boxes found at the local grocery store? Or, sadly, come across the body of someone sleeping on the sidewalk, their feet sticking out of a carton? Cardboard continues to remind us of its steadfast presence in our daily lives, a material that lends itself out readily when we need it the most. Though new innovations will undoubtedly signal the arrival and departure of less-than-natural manufacturing materials, cardboard may continue to serve as a valuable tool for years to come. Ultimately, however, we must respect materials like this one if we’re to continue benefiting from them.

Carboard Conterainer Advertising 1942

Cardboard Container Advertising 1942

Cardboard Container Advertising 1942

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Golden Glow Beer Crate

I think you still see so many wooden crates today because once they were used for everything. Every product imaginable (as long as it fit inside) was packed and transported in a wooden crate. The difference between a crate and a box is that latter gets usually destroyed (or taken apart) when removing  the product. A crate can be re-used as is.

Together with woven baskets, vases and amphoras, wooden crates are believed to be the oldest form of packaging. Corrugated cardboard boxes were only invented in the 1870s, and plastic crates weren’t used before the late 1940s. When companies started switching from wood to plastic, a lot of wooden crates probably ended up in a fireplace. I wonder how many old and broken plastic crates ended up with a romantic evening in the fire?

I’m always surprised by the weight of wooden crates. When I hold my empty Golden Glow crate, and imagine the additional weight of twenty four bottles made out of thick soda-lime glass, plus the beer, I can’t help but think what a wimp I am. Were people so much tougher sixty years ago?

Many crates have metals bands wrapped around the edges to make them more durable.

Below is an ammunition crate from the Second World War.

Ammunition Crate from Dupont/Remington Express

Small Arms Ammunition / Extra Long Range

I’m not a fan of war memorabilia (I grew up in Germany), but I couldn’t resist those box joints (somewhat similar to dovetails). Today, you will have a hard time finding this kind of dedication on an expensive piece of furniture.

Seven Up Bottling Co. of Los Angeles

The paint has been completely washed off, but the outlines of the letters are still readable. The ink must have been applied under substantial pressure.

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Wax paper is moisture and flavor proof and its texture has a great feel to it. I don’t think anyone can disagree that wax paper makes the food inside more delicious looking than plastic wrap.

Cheese Wrapped in Wax Paper

Some claim that Thomas Edison invented wax paper, but it is more likely that the French photographer Gustave Le Gray did, in 1851. But Le Gray had only photography, and not food in mind when doing so.

I grew up in Germany and we used wax paper to wrap cheese, sandwiches and other foods. Even today, many specialty  purveyors of fish, meat, and cheese wrap their wares in wax paper. And you can put it just like that in the fridge. Cheese stays fresh and delicious much longer in wax paper than in plastic. I was happy when I found out that even the American Cheese Society lists it as the most preferable way to save cheese.

A 1951 Los Angeles Times article called “Waxed Paper Eases Tasks in Kitchen, Protects Food” gives more practical advice when storing leftover food in a bowl: “Just cut a piece a little larger than the bowl top and fold the edges of the paper down to form a collar around the top of the bowl”.

In its hey-day, waxed paper was also used for packaging candy, chocolate and bread. In this picture by Russell Lee I found on Shorpy, you can see bread wrapped in wax paper on the table. The picture is from December 1936 and beautifully puts today’s economic depression into perspective (look at the mattress pushed up against the wall in order to make space for the table). I love the look on everyone’s face.

I found some nice examples of ’50s and ’60s wax paper bread packaging on the blog a sampler of things- a fine site that has  many more images for your viewing pleasure.

The 1907 book “The Treatment of Paper for Special Purposes” by Louis Edgar suggests wax paper for wrapping “tobacco and snuff”, as well as  covering jam pots in order to “exclude injurious atmospheric influences, etc.”.

The book also gives instructions on how to make your own wax paper with a hot iron, and suggests the machine below in case you want to produce larger quantities.

The individual cheeses pictured in this article are, in order top to bottom, a  Morbier (French), a  Pt. Reyes Blue (USA), a  Gruyère (Switzerland), and a Pont-l’Évêque, a soft raw cheese from France. The wooden board is a handmade gift by my architect friend Casey Huges.

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