Perrier, another French bottler renowned for its sparkling spring water, follows a similar testing schedule, but conducts bacterial and chemical tests twice monthly. Despite such efforts, Perrier in 1990 had to recall 160 million bottles of mineral water worldwide after traces of benzene were found in some samples. By the time the chemical was detected, the bottles had already been distributed. French authorities said they rely on the companies for property monitoring and cannot act until there is an incident which warrants their intervention. In 1991, the U.S. House Energy and Commmerce Committee conducted an extensive investigation of the bottled water industry in America.
Spring water is the most popular on the market.
It may be carbonated or flat. It is also said to be the most mineral-rich of all bottled waters. Spring water must, by current guidelines, have a direct connection to a natural spring. It is currently defined as water that flows naturally to the earth's surface and is drawn off there, although some companies contend such water that is tapped below the earth's surface qualifies as spring water. According to the PURE Spring Water Company, many big bottlers object to the type parameters and are lobbying for more liberal interpretations.