Luxury Water Trend Grows Amid Global Water Stress

As millions lack access to clean drinking water, the world's elite are increasingly indulging in 'fine water', sparking concerns over water commodification.

Luxury water, often sourced from pristine environments like volcanic rock in Hawaii, melting glaciers in Norway, or morning mist in Tasmania, is becoming increasingly popular among the world's elite, who treat it like fine wine.
The Fine Water Society, a consortium of small bottlers and distributors worldwide, holds annual international tasting competitions and symposiums, where connoisseurs discuss aspects like 'virginality' or purity, 'terroir' or the environment from which the water originates, and the total dissolved solids (TDS).
In India, Veen Waters India bottles natural mineral water in Bhutan and sells it in luxury hotels and restaurants for about $6 per bottle, roughly a day's wage for an Indian laborer.
Despite the growing trend of luxury water, millions worldwide lack access to clean drinking water, with India, the world's most populous country, being one of the most water-stressed nations according to the World Bank.
The commodification of water and those profiting from it are likely to become more contentious, especially as solutions like desalination and stormwater cleanup are still in their infancy in many places.