evian water history

Let’s take a look back to where it all began: 1789 to be exact. This wasn’t just any year, it was the most important year in evian water history: the year our natural mineral water source was found by a local French nobleman, the Marquis de Lessert, in the town of Évian-les-Bains. While out on a walk, he got thirsty and drank from what turned out to be far more than any ordinary source. The Marquis found this particular water to be so ‘light and easily drinkable’ that he started drinking it regularly.

Seduced by the quality of the water, Monsieur Cachat began selling its water to the local community. Soon after, people wanted more than just to drink the water, they wanted to be fully immersed in it. In 1806, the first thermal spa opened, followed in 1826 by the first bottling facility installed on the site of the Cachat source. Its popularity attracted visitors from all over Europe and beyond. The Company of the Mineral Waters of Evian and the evian® brand were then created in order to develop the activities of thermalism and water bottling. Driven by the increasing demand of people who wanted to enjoy evian® benefits at home, a bigger scale bottling started at the end of the 19th century. Ever since, our evian® water has become synonymous with healthy hydration and wellness.

In January 2017, Danone and The Ellen MacArthur Foundation announced a partnership aimed at accelerating the global transition to a circular economy. Through this partnership, Danone’s teams are working with the Foundation to generate widespread understanding of the circular economy and to drive behavioural change in an effort to transition its brands toward a circular economy. evian has benefited greatly from the knowledge and guidance of the Foundation to embed the circular economy principles in its brand.

In 2019 evian was proud to showcase its first bottles made totally from recycled plastic at The Championships, Wimbledon 2019. This was our first step towards using circularity as a solution to plastic waste.