Who Owns the Bottled Water Industry

Bottled water is the world's most consumed packaged beverage by volume, and the companies that own the major brands represent a mix of global food and beverage conglomerates, private equity buyers, and regional independents. The ownership landscape has shifted substantially since 2020, primarily because Nestlé sold most of its North American water brands to a private equity consortium, creating a new standalone company.

This post maps who owns the major bottled water brands globally, covers the recent major ownership changes, and explains why this market is far more complex than it appears. For a related post on how beverage industry concentration works, see our post on who owns the juice market.

The Big Picture: Major Ownership Groups

Nestlé Waters (and the BlueTriton split)

Nestlé was for decades the world's largest bottled water company, owning brands including Poland Spring, Deer Park, Ice Mountain, Arrowhead, Ozarka, Zephyrhills, Nestlé Pure Life, Perrier, and San Pellegrino.

In 2021, Nestlé sold its North American water brands -- including Poland Spring, Deer Park, Ice Mountain, Arrowhead, Ozarka, Zephyrhills, and Nestlé Pure Life in the US and Canada -- to One Rock Capital Partners and Metropoulos & Co. for approximately $4.3 billion. The new company was named BlueTriton Brands.

• [Perrier](/brands/perrier): France's iconic carbonated mineral water, acquired by Nestlé in 1992. Perrier is the world's most recognized sparkling water brand and is sold in more than 140 countries.
• [San Pellegrino](/brands/san-pellegrino): Italy's premium sparkling water brand, acquired by Nestlé in 1997. San Pellegrino (and its still water companion Acqua Panna) is the global market leader in premium sparkling water and a fixture on restaurant tables globally.
• Acqua Panna: Nestlé's still premium Italian spring water.
• Nestlé Pure Life (international, outside North America): The largest water brand in the world by volume in markets including Pakistan, China, and the Middle East.

BlueTriton Brands (formerly Nestlé Water North America): BlueTriton, owned by One Rock Capital Partners, operates Poland Spring, Deer Park, Ice Mountain, Arrowhead, Ozarka, Zephyrhills, Nestlé Pure Life (US), and Splash. BlueTriton has been at the center of water rights controversies in states including Maine and California, where communities have challenged the company's extraction permits amid drought conditions.

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) entered the bottled water category in 1999 with the launch of Dasani, a purified tap water product. Coca-Cola has since built a diversified water portfolio covering still, sparkling, and enhanced water categories.

[Dasani](/brands/dasani) is a purified still water brand that is produced by filtering municipal tap water and adding mineral salts. It is one of the most distributed water brands in the United States, benefiting from Coca-Cola's unmatched retail distribution system. Dasani is produced in local facilities in most markets, meaning the product sold in Atlanta is from Atlanta tap water and the product sold in London is from London tap water, filtered and mineral-supplemented.

[Smartwater](/brands/smartwater) is Coca-Cola's premium still water brand, positioned around vapour-distilled purification and electrolyte addition. Smartwater was acquired through Coca-Cola's 2007 purchase of Energy Brands (the parent company) for approximately $4.1 billion. Smartwater uses celebrity endorsements, particularly its long-running Jennifer Aniston campaigns, and targets premium positioning in the growing electrolyte water segment.

Topo Chico is a Mexican mineral water brand that Coca-Cola acquired in 2017 for approximately $220 million. Topo Chico has a cult following in Texas and the Southwestern United States and has grown rapidly nationally.

[Vitamin Water](/brands/vitaminwater) is Coca-Cola's enhanced water brand (also acquired through the 2007 Energy Brands purchase). It competes in the functional water segment with flavored and vitamin-fortified formulations.

PepsiCo

PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP) entered bottled water with Aquafina in 1994, making it one of the first major soda companies to build a filtered tap water brand.

[Aquafina](/brands/aquafina) is a purified still water brand, filtered from municipal tap water sources. Aquafina is one of the top-selling still water brands in the United States, competing directly with Dasani for the mass market. Like Dasani, Aquafina uses local municipal water sources filtered through PepsiCo's PURE system.

Bubly is PepsiCo's sparkling water brand, launched in 2018 to compete with La Croix and other unsweetened sparkling waters in the fast-growing category. Bubly has grown rapidly and is now one of the top sparkling water brands in the United States.

LIFEWTR is PepsiCo's premium still water brand, launched in 2017, positioned around art and creativity with rotating label designs by emerging artists.

SodaStream is PepsiCo's home carbonation system brand, acquired for approximately $3.2 billion in 2018. SodaStream allows consumers to carbonate tap water at home, making it an adjacent product to the bottled sparkling water category.

Danone

Danone (EPA: BN) is the world's largest spring water company by volume through its Waters division, which owns the world's most recognized natural mineral water brands.

[Evian](/brands/evian) is Danone's flagship natural mineral water brand, sourced from the French Alps. Evian is a premium brand distributed globally, positioned as natural alpine mineral water with a distinctive mineral composition. Danone acquired control of Evian in 1970.

[Volvic](/brands/volvic) is Danone's volcanic spring water from Auvergne, France, sold as a lighter, lower-mineral still water globally.

[Badoit](/brands/badoit) is Danone's French naturally sparkling mineral water brand.

QWELL and BONAFONT are Danone water brands in developing markets, particularly Latin America and the Middle East.

Danone's Waters division faced significant challenges during the COVID-19 period and the company explored strategic options for the business. However, as of early 2026, the Waters division remains part of Danone.

Regional and Independent Players

La Croix (National Beverage Corp.): La Croix is the brand that triggered the US sparkling water boom in the 2010s. It is owned by National Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: FIZZ), a smaller, focused beverage company based in Fort Lauderdale. La Croix's growth from a regional Midwest brand to a national cultural phenomenon in the mid-2010s made it one of the most studied brand revitalization cases of the decade.

Fiji Water (The Wonderful Company): Fiji Water is a premium still water sourced from an artesian aquifer in Fiji, owned by The Wonderful Company, the private holding company of Lynda and Stewart Resnick. The Wonderful Company also owns POM Wonderful, Wonderful Pistachios, and JUSTIN Vineyards.

Core Hydration (Keurig Dr Pepper): Core is an alkaline water brand acquired by Keurig Dr Pepper in 2018. It competes in the growing alkaline and pH-balanced water segment.

Liquid Death (independent): Liquid Death is a canned mountain water brand that markets aggressively in the heavy metal and skateboard culture aesthetic. Founded in 2019, it has grown rapidly and raised significant venture funding, reaching a valuation exceeding $1 billion in 2023. Liquid Death remains independent as of early 2026.

Market Share Overview

The Water Ownership Controversy

The privatization of water resources is a persistent controversy linked to bottled water brand ownership. Poland Spring (BlueTriton) has faced municipal and regulatory challenges in Maine over extraction volumes from groundwater aquifers. Nestlé previously faced similar challenges in California and in Indigenous communities in Canada over its Canadian water extraction operations. The sale of Nestlé's North American brands to private equity amplified concerns that profit-oriented owners with less regulatory visibility would be more aggressive in extraction.

The environmental impact of single-use plastic is a related and ongoing controversy affecting every bottled water brand. Most major brands have committed to increasing recycled plastic content and reducing packaging, but single-use PET plastic water bottles remain a major contributor to global plastic waste.

FAQ

Did Nestlé sell Poland Spring? Yes. In 2021, Nestlé sold Poland Spring, Deer Park, Ice Mountain, Arrowhead, Ozarka, Zephyrhills, and Nestlé Pure Life (North America) to One Rock Capital Partners for approximately $4.3 billion. The new company was rebranded as BlueTriton Brands.

Is Evian owned by Nestlé? No. Evian is owned by Danone. Nestlé owns Perrier and San Pellegrino. All three are major European mineral water brands, but they are owned by different companies.

Is Dasani just filtered tap water? Yes. Dasani and Aquafina are both purified municipal tap water products -- they start with local tap water, filter it through reverse osmosis and other purification processes, and add back mineral salts to standardize the taste. This is disclosed on product labels. They are distinct from spring or mineral water products like Evian and Poland Spring.

Explore Related Brands

• Perrier - Nestlé's French sparkling mineral water, the world's most recognized sparkling water brand
• Evian - Danone's premium still mineral water from the French Alps
• Dasani - Coca-Cola's purified still water brand, distributed globally
• Aquafina - PepsiCo's purified water brand, one of the top-selling US waters
• Smartwater - Coca-Cola's vapor-distilled premium water brand

Browse all food and beverage brands

Sources

1. Nestlé: BlueTriton Brands sale announcement, 2021 -- https://www.nestle.com/media/pressreleases 2. Coca-Cola Annual Report 2024 -- https://investors.coca-colacompany.com/ 3. PepsiCo Annual Report 2024 -- https://www.pepsico.com/investors 4. Danone Annual Report 2024 -- https://www.danone.com/investors 5. Bloomberg: Nestlé water brands sale to BlueTriton -- https://www.bloomberg.com 6. International Bottled Water Association Market Report 2024 -- https://www.bottledwater.org 7. Forbes: Liquid Death valuation 2023 -- https://www.forbes.com

All brand ownership data verified through WhoBrands.com research methodology. Last updated: March 2026.