A new star on the bottled water horizon
Magnesium-rich BlueStar targets health-conscious
consumers
G-UP Corporation recently launched
BlueStar Sparkling Spring water, which comes in a 28-ounce
cobalt blue glass bottle, and BlueStar Adobe Spring Water
in 20-ounce PET bottles, both of which contain
magnesium-rich Adobe Springs mineral water from
California
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When G-UP Corporation (San Jose, CA), the makers of The
Silicon Valley energy drink, started looking for a natural
spring for a new bottled sparkling spring water product,
they didn't have to look too far. Almost in their backyard
sits Adobe Springs, a magnesium-rich mineral water source
located in a rugged, mountainous area about 60 miles
southeast of San Francisco.
A mineral water aficionado, G-UP president and CEO
Dominique Nguyen says he was impressed not only with the
taste of Adobe Springs but also with its high magnesium
content, which is hard to find in US natural spring water.
Nguyen was convinced Adobe Springs was the best water
source, not only for his new BlueStar line, but also for
himself.
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"I have since switched to [BlueStar] for my drinking. I and
many customers agree that BlueStar water tastes better than other
foreign or domestic spring waters. I also feel better every day
after drinking BlueStar," he attests.
G-UP Corporation launched BlueStar Sparkling Spring Water
about six months ago, but the brand is already getting rave
reviews. BlueStar won the bronze star in the Berkeley Springs
International Water Tasting Awards in February, the only US
bottled water in the top five.
The brand comes in a 28-ounce cobalt blue glass bottle and
12-ounce cans. Although BlueStar is currently only available in
California, Nguyen says there are plans to expand into other
states this year and into other countries in 2004. Consumers in
California can find BlueStar in grocery stores, specialty stores
and restaurants. G-UP Corporation also receives orders for
BlueStar from consumers in other states via telephone and the
company's website.
Tony J. Varni, operations manager for Mid-State Bottling in
Modesto, the contract packer for the product, says the water is
trucked from the spring source to the bottler where carbonation
is added to create BlueStar Sparkling Spring Water. A
non-carbonated spring water, called BlueStar Adobe Springs Water,
also will be bottled by Mid-State and will be available later
this spring.
As a domestic water product, Nguyen says BlueStar provides
consumers with high mineral quality and good taste but at a
better price compared to imports. And, Nguyen believes
health-conscious consumers will be drawn to the product for the
natural therapeutic properties of its high magnesium content. In
fact, Nguyen is so convinced of the health benefits of his
magnesium-rich water, G-UP uses it as a selling point. The bottle
labels reference the water's natural magnesium content and the
company's website and promotional materials highlight medical
research linking magnesium to longevity and better health.
According to Dr. Carolyn Dean, a certified clinical
nutritionist and author of The Miracle of Magnesium,
magnesium deficiency, which a large percentage of Americans
suffer from, is linked to increased risk of heart disease, stroke
and diabetes. Increasing magnesium intake has also been shown to
alleviate a number of other health problems, including migraines,
muscle pain, insomnia and depression.
With about 100 milligrams of magnesium per liter and no
sodium, BlueStar provides consumers with a healthy dose of
magnesium. Most US bottled water products have, on average, about
2.7 milligrams of magnesium per liter compared with an average of
20 milligrams per liter in European mineral waters.
Adobe Springs has recently been getting some buzz because of
its rich magnesium content. For instance, Bill Sardi, author of
In Search of the World's Best Water, touts Adobe Springs
for its balanced ratio of magnesium calcium and sodium. Located
at 1,375 feet above sea level in an isolated location, the
springs are kept pure without any influence from insecticides,
herbicides, chemicals or smog, says Paul Mason, owner of Adobe
Springs Water Company.
The location of the springs is so steep it is not possible to
build a bottling plant at the source. "We're zoned agricultural
and there's no labor force out here in this wilderness to work at
a bottling plant," says Mason.
Varni says Noah's Mid-State Beverage, the bottler for Noah's
California Spring Water, began bottling Adobe Springs water 11
years ago.
"We knew that Adobe Springs was different in the fact that it
was mineral rich compared to most other spring waters in
California and we thought if we were going to come out with
something we might as well differentiate ourselves a little bit.
The health benefits of the water were just an added bonus," he
says.
Varni says he now promotes Adobe Springs water to any beverage
marketer looking to produce a mineral water product.
-Heather Todd
Tel: +1 408/392-0688
Net: www.bluestarsprings
Beverage World, April 2003, page 14
www.beverageworld.com
This page was first uploaded to The Magnesium Web Site on May
1, 2003
http://www.mgwater.com/
Healthy Water
Association--USA