Highland Spring Group
Highland Spring is a privately-held, tax-haven registered, supplier of bottled water. Despite the name, none of the water is from within the Scottish Highlands - its still and sparkling water is produced at its 5 factories in Scotland and Wales.ref The company claims to be the UK's largest bottled water company.ref
Brands
- Highland Spring water is sourced from a privately-owned catchment area in the Ochil Hills, Perthshire. The land which rain falls on, and drains through, is certified organic by the Soil Association. Website
- Speyside Glenlivet is sourced from the highest naturally occurring spring in the UK on the Crown Estate of Glenlivet in Scotland. The spring produces water with an unusually low mineral content.ref, website
- Hydr8 ia a budget cash-and-carry brand, geared towards cash-conscious customers. It is sold primarily through specialist food service distributors and cash-and-carry outlets.ref, website page
- Private label: a range of private label ("own-brand") flavoured and unflavoured waters wholesaled to supermarkets and food service retailers.ref, About
Plastic Pollution
The Highland Spring Group bottles 600+ million litres of water per year,[1] potentially generating the same number of single-use plastic bottles. The Group is attempting to use rPET for its plastic bottles,[2] but that does not help the problem.
Recycling Plastics Will Not Solve the Pollution Problem. Most plastic can only be recycled once, then it's plastic waste.[1] Others, eg. PET and HDPE, can be recycled 8-10 times, then they're plastic waste.[2] Bioplastics can be recycled, but need expen$ive processing.[3] Every piece of the 8.3bn tons of plastic ever made still exists (excluding incinerated).[4]
The UK generates ~5.2m tons every year:[5] ~26% → abroad (we don't have the recycling infrastructure);[6] 55% → landfill (remains there indefinitely, contaminating groundwater); 18% → incinerated (dioxins, furans, heavy metals, CO2-intensive); ~1% → litter. [7] Recycling is not a solution because (a) it does not stop the continuous flow of new, virgin, single-use plastic disposable products that enter our environment every single day; and (b) only ~7% of plastic can be recycled.[8] |
Company
Ownership
- UAE billionaire Mohammed Mahdi Al Tajirref
Structure
- Park Tower Holdings Establishment, OC, reg. Liechtenstein
- ?... ...?
- Ochil Holdings Ltd, OC, reg. Gibraltar
Timeline
Nov.2015 | Entered into a long-term distribution agreement with Lucozade Ribena Suntory, representing ~30% of the company's sales volume. |
Mar.2010 | Greencore Water: Greencore Group plc's bottled water division was acquired. The deal included two bottling facilities at Campsie Fells (Scotland) and Blaen Twyni (Wales). ref,ref |
2010 | Gleneagles Spring Water Company Ltd was hived up into Highland Spring Ltd; the company then ceased trading, as did Watermedia Ltd. |
Mar.2009 | Speyside Glenlivet (HSL) Company Ltd acquired Speyside Glenlivet Water Company Ltd,CH which had the rights of extraction of natural mineral water from two springs on the Glenlivet Estate in the Cairngorms National Park - part of the Crown Estate. |
Apr.2001 | Gleneagles Spring Water Company Ltd was acquired from Time Holdings Ltd,CH an indirect subsidiary of Theta Overseas Ltd, reg. British Virgin Islands. |
2001 | Watermedia Ltd was acquired; it bottled and distributed water as a promotional product.OC |
2001 | Soil Association Certified: Water itself cannot be certified, but the catchment area - the land rain falls on - can.ref Highland Spring water is drawn from 2,000 acres of protected land in Perthshire, Scotland, which has been kept free from farming, agricultural spraying, pesticides and habitation for 20+ years.ref The Soil Association accordingly certified the land as organic. |
Aug.2000 | Ochil Holdings Ltd, registered in Gibraltar, became the company's parent. Tay Consult Establishment handed over all its shares to Ochil Holdings Ltd. |
Oct.1995 | A 2nd new office was opened in Pittsburgh, USA. |
May.1995 | A new office was opened in Jersey. |
Oct.1988 | Highland Spring Inc was incorporated in Delaware, USA, to distribute the company's products. |
Mar.1986 | Management Changes: Stirling Mineral Water Ansalt was sacked, as was the MD and Brandane Overseas Consultants Ltd. New management was brought in, and retrieved the company from falling over a financial cliff. |
Apr.2981 | Highland Spring Ltd: the company renamed itself. |
Mar.1979 | Stirling Mineral Water Company Ltd was incorporated as a subsidiary of Liechtenstein-registered Tay Consult Establishment. Liechtenstein is a well-known tax haven.ref |
Articles
- Jun.o8.2018: Highland Spring trials UK's first 100% recycled bottle. Highland Spring is to trial a 100% recycled bottle in selected supermarkets. BBC News.
References
- ^ Group information. Now bottling over 600 million litres of water a year... Highland Spring Group. Accessed Mar.21.2019.
- ^ Highland Spring to roll out 100% recycled plastic eco bottle. Following a successful 2018 trial, the Highland Spring eco bottle will join the existing Highland Spring natural source water range, where all bottles are 100% recyclable. The cap and label are not, however made from recycled plastic. Waqas Qureshi, Packaging News, Jan.21.2019.