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American consumers have cut up to 68 trillion calories out of their diets during the past 15 years, driven by an increase in consumption of bottled water and a decline in the popularity of other non-alcoholic beverages, according to new research.
The study from Beverage Marketing Corporation (BMC) shows that, over the past two decades, bottled water has been the leading growth category in the US beverage market, with total volume exceeding 11.7 billion gallons in 2015 – up from 4.7 billion in 2000. Individual bottled water consumption soared during the same period, up from 16.7 gallons per person in 2000 to 36.7 gallons in 2015.
By contrast, all other liquid refreshment beverage categories declined in both volume and consumption during this time, the New York-based organisation said.
Non-bottled CSDs, fruit beverages, energy drinks, sports beverages, ready-to-drink coffee and tea, and all forms of milk decreased from 27 billion gallons to 25.8 billion gallons during the 15 years – a 16.3% decline amounting to 15 gallons per person.
In total, the shifts in consumption behaviour have contributed to calorie savings of more than 24,000 calories per person per year – or as many as 74 calories per person per day. This is equivalent, BMC said, to every American cutting out 161 hot dogs per year – one hot dog every 2.25 days – or alternatively 126 chocolate doughnuts or 87 cheeseburgers.
BMC chairman and chief executive officer Michael Bellas said: “Bottled water’s ascent has been driven in large part by America’s move to healthier beverage choices, which has effectively resulted in calorie savings for all Americans. To put this in perspective, imagine a person cutting 161 hot dogs, 126 chocolate doughnuts or 87 cheeseburgers from their diet last year. That’s the kind of difference we’re talking about when we quantify the number of calories saved due to this widespread shift to bottled water.”
“Bottled water already outsells, by volume, carbonated soft drinks in many US cities, and we expect that it will very soon become the most consumed beverage product nationwide,” added Gary Hemphill, managing director – research for BMC.
The findings appear to confirm predictions, as reported by FoodBev last month, that changes in consumption of bottled water and fizzy drinks would result in bottled water overtaking CSDs as the most consumed beverage type in the US “by 2017”.
“Caloric savings of this magnitude is rarely achieved by any food or beverage category,” added Bellas. “As health-conscious consumers continue to select bottled water in the years ahead, both they and the bottled water industry will feel the benefits of this choice.”
© FoodBev Media Ltd 2024