JUST Water packaging plant in Glens Falls is making a big splash in the bottled water industry with the introduction of its innovative and 100 percent recyclable containers.
The company, which recently began operations in the former St. Alphonsus Roman Catholic Church at 31 Broad St., Glens Falls, is all about sustainability, environmental conservation and giving back to communities. According to COO Jim Siplon, “we are a social impact consumer company.”
JUST aims to be a disrupter in the bottled water industry, not just by paying six times the municipal rate for water, or by using less than 3 percent of the excess water in the Adirondack’s watershed and working with the municipality to improve its water delivery infrastructure, but also by changing the way water is packaged and sold, according to the company.
Working with Tetra Pak, a producer of innovative and environmentally safe packaging, JUST developed a container it calls “a better bottle.” The water container is made of 54 percent paper, sourced from 100 percent certified and traceable Forest Stewardship Council-managed forests; 28 percent plant-based plastic, which is made from an FDA-approved sugarcane-based resin; 15 percent traditional plastic; and 3 percent aluminum foil, which forms the protective liner on the inside of the packaging.
The company maintains that the materials and manufacturing processes employed to make their packaging results in a 74 percent reduction of harmful emissions–particularly CO2–into the environment.
It doesn’t stop with just the container. Most plastic bottles are shipped either pre-formed–which means they must be heated and fully blown upon arrival at the bottling facility–or the bottles are shipped fully formed.
JUST packaging arrives at the Glens Falls facility flattened and in large rolls. In doing so, they use just one standard 40-foot long truck to deliver 1.5 million containers, as opposed to the 2.5 trucks necessary to ship pre-formed bottles and 13 trucks to ship the same number of fully formed bottles.
“Not only do we reduce our carbon footprint by having fewer trucks on the road,” said Siplon. “We are also very conscious of the impact on our neighbors, who are very happy about the small number of trucks traveling on their streets.”
The JUST Water cartons are 100 percent recyclable. The wider cap allows for the water to be consumed more easily, thereby cutting down on waste from partially consumed water. JUST has paid attention to other concerns voiced by consumers regarding the safety of bottled water. One mother complained that there are so many water bottles in her kid’s class, it’s often impossible to tell what bottle belongs to whom.
JUST responded by including a space on the containers so parents can write their children’s names on them. The wide cap is also “roughed” so that parents can write a name on it too, without having it wipe off, as it does on normal plastic.
JUST Water is currently being sold for 99 cents at most stores, and in some stores, the price is as low as 69 cents, according to the company. The company has its product in 13,000 stores nationwide, including Whole Foods, Hannaford and Fresh Market, and they expect the number to increase to 20,000 stores by the end of this year.
Siplon said the container is really a metaphor for the JUST business model and mission.
“The way we value the water, how we embrace clean technology and how we reach out to the community to provide education and understanding of sustainability, while partnering with them to improve how water is delivered to the consumer – that’s what we are all about. We have to be about so much more than just the package.”