Letter Sent to Deer Park
October 21, 2004
VP Consumer Affairs
Deer Park Spring Water Co.
A division of Nestlé Waters North America
2767 East Imperial Highway, Suite 100
Brea, CA 92821
Dear VP of Consumer Affairs:
I was totally shocked to find out that Deer Park adds sulfates to its water. However, I was downright terrified to find that consumers are not warned about this additive, OR the huge amount of sulfates per ounce that you actually add. According to your consumer service hotline, you add 8.5 mg per 8 fluid ounces.
At this moment, I am largely incapacitated after spending two weeks of serious symptoms such as vomiting, dizziness, painful esophogitis, migraine headaches, and a face covered with hives. All of this is a direct result of consuming Deer Park water. I am one of those millions of Americans with serious sensitivity to Sulfur based preservatives.
As a sensitive individual, I carefully research the labels of every product that I put into my body. However, you do not provide me the tools I need to stay healthy by providing a warning label. This seems to be in direct violation of what the Federal Food and Drug Administration had to say on its website. To wit:
“Bottled water, because it is a food, must comply with the general requirements for food labeling contained in 21 CFR 10”
So why aren’t you properly labeling your product? Why did I have to call your consumer affairs hotline in order to find out what was poisoning me? People who purchase bottled water because they are afraid of contaminants or toxins in tap water simply don’t expect the company who bottles the water to add things to it without letting people know.
At the very least, I need you to immediately terminate all bottled water shipments from Deer Park to my home. I was using your home delivery service, as well as purchasing your 1 pt bottles until the toxin level got high enough to sicken me to this extent. When I first became ill, I tried to “flush” it out of my system by increasing my water consumption. I’m afraid to think what might have happened if I hadn’t just happened to telephone your consumer affairs department to ask if your water added sulfates.
I can only guess how many Americans may be suffering symptoms for which they don’t know the cause is your water. I must urge you to immediately begin labeling your product before someone more sensitive than I am suffers irreparable damage or even death because they presume your water is safe for them.
Please do the right thing. Please properly label your products. And please immediately terminate my bottled water shipments.
Sincerely,
ME