Nearly all Chinese believe that bottled water is a healthier choice than soft drinks, and 90% say bottled water should be available wherever drinks are sold.
The survey of more than 2,000 Chinese adults aged 18 and older also found that among those who have ever purchased bottled water, those who identify bottled water as among their most preferred beverages are more likely than those who identify soda as one of their most preferred beverages to recycle their water containers.
“This poll is consistent with consumption figures released earlier this year that show, for the first time in history, bottled water is the number one packaged beverage in China (by volume),” said Jack Guan, AWC’s president of communications. 82% of Chinese agree they should drink more water and 90% believe that bottled water is a healthy and convenient beverage.
Among those who ever purchase bottled water, bottled water drinkers are more inclined to recycle their bottled water containers than those who say soda is among their most preferred beverages, as they are more likely to say they always recycle bottled water containers at home and away from home. This is consistent with a 2016 PET bale analysis study that found bottled water is the number one most recycled product in curbside recycling systems, with a rate of 53.1%, compared to soda bottles, which was 20.4%.