Nestlé Waters plastic dumping – overview
- Nestlé Waters faces trial over alleged large-scale plastic dumping in France
- Investigators report microplastic contamination up to 1.3 million times Seine levels
- Company accused of illegal waste disposal, causing environmental damage and health risks
- Case follows raids and scrutiny over water treatment affecting mineral classification
- Ongoing legal issues may complicate Nestlé Waters sale and future strategy
Nestlé Waters is once again under fire for its operational practices, following the release of footage claiming to show illegally dumped plastic waste dating back over a decade.
The latest development comes less than two weeks after raids were carried out on Nestlé Waters sites as part of an ongoing investigation into the alleged use of water treatments to prevent contamination. Those treatment, it’s claimed, mean its mineral water can no longer be described as ‘natural mineral water’.
Nestlé Waters plastic waste
Nestlé Waters is accused of illegally dumping hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of water bottles, leading to the contamination of soil and water resources surrounding the Contrex and Hépar drilling sites, which serve as sources for Nestlé Waters’ mineral water.
Contamination levels are said to be “up to 1.3 million times higher than levels found in the Seine River,” according to measurements by investigators from the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB). That’s the equivalent of a spoonful of microplastics per litre of water.
The multinational is currently on trial in France for this alleged contamination, which the order to stand trial says has caused “substantial environmental degradation” and “serious harm to human health”, according to Le Monde.
The French publication goes on to say that by agreeing to pay a €2m fine as part of a settlement with French prosecutors back in September 2024, Nestlé thought it would avoid a trial over its “illegal practices” (drilling and filters) at its bottling sites (Vittel, Contrex, Hépar) in the Vosges region of eastern France. That was not the case.
Footage of waste revealed
News outlet Reuters has released footage of one of the alleged dumping sites, showing the sheer scale of the problem.
“We’re talking about a depth equivalent to a seven-storey building,” says Bernard Schmitt, plaintiff and spokesperson for French environmental and citizen organisation Collectif EAU 88. “What we see is the tip of the iceberg and the bulk of the plastic is at the bottom of the ground.”
He goes on to say that what’s not known is “how much of the plastic was burned” as industrial waste of plastic containers was incinerated in the area over an almost 20-year period.
“In my opinion, there’s no other word for it but criminal,” says Schmitt. “It’s an ecocide.”
The contamination, he says, “doesn’t just affect humans, but affects all fauna and flora” and “compromises the water supply for future generations”.
The surface water sources used by Nestlé and the local population are, Schmitt claims, “already polluted”.
Nestlé has said it was aware of this as early as 2014 and since then, Schmitt claims, no action has been taken to remedy the issue.
Nestlé Waters made the following statement in response to the claims and ongoing trial.
“Nestlé Waters France remains determined to present its arguments as the proceedings continue and is, meanwhile, pursuing its efforts to deal with the three remaining historic landfill sites responsibly, in coordination with the relevant authorities.”
Nestlé Waters’ future now hinges on far more than the outcome of a single trial. Mounting legal pressures, regulatory scrutiny and reputational damage are converging at a critical moment for the bottled water business.
Even if the company succeeds in defending aspects of the case, the expectations placed on it will have fundamentally shifted towards full transparency on water sourcing, waste management and environmental remediation.
We’ll be reporting on developments as they unfold.
