One could stick a straw in the ground in San Jose and, if water dribbled over, could claim it came from a spring in San Diego. The most glaring misuse of labeling still appears on the bottle of Aquafina, Pepsi's brand of bottled water. The label paints mountains and snow, insinuating that the water comes directly from a geologic source. Representatives for Big Water felt vindicated and pleased with the ruling. It's the FDA's, the EPA's and several state health regulatory agencies.
Bottled water is one of the most regulated industries.
To exist, legally speaking, boreholes need to keep the same chemistry as the water from the original spring. But there are plenty of ways, Miller says, that borehole operators can rig the wells and fudge the paperwork to get results that support their cause. Also, the FDA hardly has the manpower to monitor all the boreholes in the country. It's not really enforceable. And, unfortunately for consumers, Bill Sullivan argues, his lawsuit failed to make the label change enforceable either.