Bottled water celebrates twin triumphs

Published: 09 November, 2009

Just days after raising a staggering £1 million for charity, Harrogate-based Thirsty Planet bottled water has been highly commended by judges in a prestigious national awards ceremony which was held at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

The bottled water brand's unique partnership with the charity Pump Aid earned the plaudit in the Third Sector Excellence Awards which recognise outstanding work by registered charities, not-for-profits, social enterprises and campaigning groups. Third Sector is the UK's leading publication and web site for people involved in the voluntary and not-for-profit sector. Top place was taken by toilet tissue Andrex and its charity partner, the Teenage Cancer Trust.

Thirsty Planet, launched in March 2007, supports Pump Aid's work with rural communities in Malawi and Zimbabwe. Donations made from every bottles sold help to fund digging wells and installing pumps that will deliver sustainable supplies of clean and disease-free water to some of the poorest people in the world. The £1 million raised from sales to date will supply a massive 730 billion litres of clean water.

Paul Martin, MD of Harrogate-based Waterbrands, parent company of Thirsty Planet, is thrilled with its success: "It took us two years to find a charity that fitted our brief when we were planning the launch of Thirsty Planet. But these two fantastic achievements show we made the right decision.

"We have the utmost admiration for Pump Aid. From the start it impressed us with its cost-effectiveness and its method of working, particularly its sensitivity to cultural issues. We're incredibly proud that together we are helping more than one million people in Zimbabwe and Malawi get on the first step out of poverty.

"And of course we have to thank all our loyal customers, consumers and suppliers who have given us such overwhelming support and helped to make Thirsty Planet the top-selling good-cause water brand."

International director of Pump Aid, Kathryn Llewellyn, thanked Thirsty Planet for its support saying, "The regular funding we receive from Thirsty Planet has helped us to accelerate our installation programme in Malawi and to keep going in Zimbabwe during the recent troubled times. We'd like to thank everyone who has ever bought a bottle of Thirsty Planet and assure them that every penny of their donation has been used wisely. There are still almost a billion people in the world without access to clean water so we still have a long way to go."

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