Nestlé's water business has been sued by a local French competitor, Bonneval Emergence for alleged "unfair competition".
Local publication Le Monde on Wednesday (17 December) reported it had learned Bonneval Emergence had filed a suit against the Perrier water maker with the economic activities in Nanterre.
The group has also asked the court to pause sales of Nestlé's bottled water brands, including Vittel, Contrex and Perrier, and to recall bottles, with a €1m ($1.2m) penalty for each day of delay.
It has asked for €1.6bn in damages to cover the alleged economic disadvantage it has experienced due to the "unlawful" existence of those Nestlé products in France and other markets.
The group has also argued Nestlé's water products have benefited "unduly" from being able to use the "natural mineral waters" term for its products.
Bonneval Emergence, which does business under the name Bonneval Waters, declined to comment on the issue but confirmed to Just Drinks it had filed the lawsuit, as well as the accuracy of the Le Monde report.
The group's portfolio is made up of packaged mineral water products, including its namesake brand, as well as Roche Claire and Joséphine.
Responding to the filing of the suit, a spokesperson for Nestlé's waters business in France said: “Nestlé Waters takes note of this summons, filed on grounds that we believe are wholly unfounded. We will vigorously defend our position.
"In view of the ongoing procedure, we will not comment further, however we would like to reiterate that the food safety of our natural mineral waters is and has always been guaranteed, as has been confirmed many times by the authorities.”
Earlier this month, batches of Perrier bottled mineral waters were blocked from the market by local authorities in France following a bacterial analysis of one of Nestlé’s wells in Vergèze.
An investigative report from Radio France shared by Franceinfo then suggested two of the group’s mineral water wells had been shut for a five-day period at the end of November after new bacterial contamination was found at its Vergèze site in the Gard department.
When questioned on the topic by Just Drinks, Nestlé’s water business said: “As is normal in these situations, some pallets were blocked at our site.
“These will remain at our site until further notice from the relevant authority”.
In mid-November, a French court ruled Nestlé could continue to market its Perrier water products in France using the term “natural mineral water”.
The Nanterre judicial court rejected a request from French consumer rights group UFC Que-Choisir to remove Perrier water products from the market.
Nestlé and its water business have faced scrutiny over the past 18 months after admitting to breaking French laws in how it treated bottled mineral water against contamination.
In May, French authorities ordered the group to remove system filters from its Vergèze and Vosges sites in France, which makes bottled water brands such as Perrier and Contrex.
Two months on, in a separate investigation, the headquarters of Nestlé’s operations of France were raided by local authorities. The investigation was a result of a complaint from consumer rights group Foodwatch, the French government’s General Directorate for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control (DGCCRF) then said.
French authorities today have also approved Nestlé's operating licenses for two wells in Vergèze, following the group's application in July.
"This decision by the local authority serves as recognition of our teams’ hard work over the past four years to modernise our site, adapt to growing environmental challenges, strengthen our commitment to protecting this precious resource, and respond to changing market and consumer expectations," the group's local water business said.
