America’s Largest Bottler On Plastic – Ann Canela, Head of Niagara Cares, the Philanthropic Arm of Niagara Water

“We were the first to lightweight our bottles. So, if you think about a typical bottle of soda, it's about 27 grams of plastic. Our bottles, this year, I think they're coming in at 6.6 grams. So it's incredibly lightweight. I always say, you know, it's a Niagara bottle if it crinkles…We've created label-less bottles so they're easier to recycle. …And, we're now running lines that are in entirely recycled content. So we are very committed to creating bottles that that do not harm the planet, and also that allow for the most circular of products while we also think about what the bottle of the future might look like.” Ann Canela on Electric Ladies Podcast

The International Bottled Water Association reported recently that 16.4 billion gallons of bottled water were sold in the United States in 2024.That's a 2.9% increase over 2023 – not to mention all the other bottled drinks we consume. Drinking water is good for you. But there's the plastic to deal with. What responsibility does the bottling company take for all that plastic and their role in society?

Listen to Ann Canela, Head of Niagara Cares and Director of Corporate Giving at Niagara Water in this fascinating conversation with Electric Ladies Podcast host Joan Michelson.

You’ll hear about:

●        How bottled water gets to your local market,

●        How Niagara Water dramatically reduced the plastic content of its bottles and is taking steps to improve recycling.

●        Where corporate philanthropy is focused at this tumultuous moment when so many government grants were abruptly cancelled.

●        Plus, career advice, such as:

 

“I think the best thing you can do is define you first….what your values are at this time, and have been for probably since you were a child. And some definition to what your purpose is in the world….The second one I think is.…I would just encourage, especially midcareer women to think, ‘what if the things that were right for you, you knew they were right for you because they were easy, not hard?’ Because they came to you in a way that felt aligned versus you're scrapping and fighting for them.…Hard work is a core of success, but it's not the only way to get there.…So what if we considered things that came to us and were at our feet as the right path for us to go down?”

Ann Canela on Electric Ladies Podcast

 

Read Joan’s Forbes articles here.

 

You’ll also like:

·       Helping Communities Recycle More: Keefe Harrison, President of The Recycling Partnership

·       America Recycles Day: Emily Tipaldo, U.S. Plastics Pact

·       Solutions to Our Waste Problem: Melissa Modica, Waste Harmonics

·       Reducing the Carbon Footprint of Movies & Television Productions: Emellie O’Brien, President of Earth Angel – who is taking a lot more than plastic bottles out of movie productions.

·       Business Leaders Bridging The Gap – Women business leaders from The Earth Day Women’s Summit on the unique role of business in addressing the climate crisis.

 

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