The consumer association UFC-Que Choisir is requesting this Wednesday late morning, at the Nanterre judicial court, the temporary withdrawal of Perrier bottles, a brand of Nestlé Waters, whose marketing as "natural mineral water" it considers misleading.
The association's stated objective is to obtain provisional measures for "withdrawals from the market and product recalls", "a ban on marketing" and "the cessation of deceptions concerning these Perrier waters presented as 'natural mineral waters'".
UFC believes that "consumers are buying water sold as natural mineral water when it is not natural, since it has been treated," the association's lawyer, Alexis Macchetto, told AFP.
The UFC had filed an application with the Nanterre court in the spring via an expedited procedure which allows someone to be summoned to appear in a very short period of time, but the hearing scheduled for July was ultimately postponed.
Nestlé Waters told AFP that it remains "fully determined" to "contest" the UFC's legal action, while still "operating under the control of the authorities."
In early 2024, press articles revealed the use in previous years of prohibited treatments (ultraviolet, activated carbon) at Nestlé Waters bottling sites to, according to the subsidiary of the Swiss group which includes the Vittel, Perrier and Contrex brands, "ensure the sanitary safety" of the waters.
However, natural mineral water cannot be subjected to any disinfection or treatment that would alter its characteristics.
UFC-Que Choisir also believes that there is "a real risk for the consumer: without action taken, one day someone could fall ill," says Me Macchetto.
Contamination, particularly by bacteria "of fecal origin", has been detected several times in recent years, especially after heavy rains, on the boreholes used for Perrier.
The group claims that they are "isolated incidents", that these pollutions concerned "wells that are now suspended", and adds that "all necessary measures are taken in case of an anomaly".
"Our waters and products have always been safe to consume," Nestlé Waters assures.
For Me Macchetto, the risk is all the more obvious since Nestlé recently, at the request of the Gard prefecture, where the production site is located, "replaced its 0.2 micrometer filters with 0.45 micrometer filters", a technology "necessarily less efficient" according to the lawyer.
In May, when the Gard prefecture issued a formal notice, the prefect clearly stated that "the Perrier bottles marketed to date do not present any health risk to consumers".
According to Radio France, which had access to the company's defense arguments, Nestlé Waters is counting in particular on the change of filter to defend itself, arguing that "the action of UFC-Que Choisir today has nothing to do with its summons," which concerned a technology (0.2 micrometer filters) that is no longer relevant.
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