FIJI Green Gal: Joining the blog today is one of my colleagues, whom we’ve dubbed “FIJI Hungry Gal” because the girl sure does love to eat! I can always count on her for a great restaurant recommendation and ideas for a dinner party menu. I’ve also had the good fortune to eat her cooking, and the girl’s got skills. She’ll be sharing some of her great food insights with us on this blog. Read the rest of this entry »

My fellow FIJI fans, if you”ve been keeping up with our FIJI Green blog, or even if this is your first visit, I”ve got very exciting news! You”ve got a chance to win two VIP Patron Passes to the Sonoma Jazz+ Festival, a four day Memorial Day weekend celebration of world class music, delicious food and fine wines amidst the unique ambiance of California”s wine country. Read the rest of this entry »

It occurred to me this is a wonderful place to share some of how I live a little healthier and greener, and in turn, improve what I’m doing by learning from our readers!

Nothing I do is extraordinary or time consuming, but I feel good about my little part. Here’s a list of what I do:

• I have two garbage cans in my kitchen, one for soiled stuff, the other for recycling.
• I recycle all my used coffee grains and filters and feed them to my yard as natural fertilizer.
• I replaced all my household cleaners with earth-friendly and non-chemical solutions. Vinegar and water on my hardwood floors make them shine better than any other product I”ve ever used!
• When running the water for my kids’ bath, I don”t let the water warm up before putting the drain plug in.
• I replaced every bulb in the house with those CFL light bulbs.
• We have large fish tanks and bought a pump to water the lawn when we clean the tanks. The water has great fertilizer in it!
• We use the door hanger advertisements as coloring books for my kids, and recycle the ones that don”t get put on the refrigerator for display!
• On the weekends, we try to walk more and drive less.
• I sign up for paperless statements when they’re offered.
• I re-use envelopes for shopping lists, etc… blank, white envelopes are perfect!
• I turn off the water when I”m brushing my teeth.
• We unplug electrics after using them.
• We purchase predominantly organic food.

I”d love to hear little steps you take that help you live a healthy, greener life!

Courtesy of finewaters.com, some nice news about progress on the recycling front…

“With data compiled during an extensive bale composition study in 15 locations in 14 states, the 2008 NAPCOR PET analysis states: ‘Water bottles are now the most recycled container in curbside programs by weight, and overwhelmingly by number.’ PET water bottles now account for 50% of all the PET bottles and containers collected by curbside recycling. This trend was consistent in all curbside bales sampled nationally, with no major shifts observed in any other plastic container category. The biggest jump in water bottle collection for recycling was in California, where a state-funded consumer education campaign, emphasizing that water bottles are recyclable, seems to be having the desired effect.”

There’s still a lot more we can do, though. Check out FIJIGreen.com to learn more about recycling’s environmental benefits, play a recycling game, and find out how you can help improve recycling rates across the board!

FIJI Green Gal: Here’s an update from Fiji courtesy of Molly, our FIJI Water Foundation coordinator…

FIJI Water and its hundreds of employees in Fiji were proud to join Fiji”s Earth Hour celebrations this year. On March 28th from 8.30pm to 9.30pm, the factory in Yaqara shut down bottled water operations and used critical lighting only, as did the logistics, finance, and foundation offices in Lautoka and Suva. We encouraged our employees, friends, and neighbors in the communities around our factory to do the same, supplied water to Earth Hour volunteers in the West, and also assisted in the collection and recycling of those donated bottles.

Elsewhere in Fiji, landmark buildings turned off their lights, restaurants held candlelit dinners with live guitar serenades, and at resorts guests were guided to their rooms by tiki torch.

Participating in this year”s Earth Hour is a part of our ongoing commitment to energy efficiency and the environment. As we work on big projects – cutting emissions across our products’ entire life cycle, promoting local recycling, investing in forest carbon and renewable energy projects- we also remember that there are small things we can all do every day to make a difference on our planet.

For more information about Earth Hour, visit www.earthhour.org and see how you and your community can be a part of next year”s celebration.

Last October, Major League Soccer team Real Salt Lake unveiled the Rio Tinto green stadium in Utah. FIJI Water is the exclusive water of this innovative sports arena. Our incredibly talented production artist Robert, along with sales guys extraordinaire Jonathan and Parker, helped transform one of the stadium’s luxury suites into a gorgeous space that reflects the beauty of Fiji. Looking at these photos reminds me of sitting on the beach in Fiji…ahhhh…

FIJI Green Gal: Along with Marssie, our fantastic events coordinator David will be bringing you “Out and About” highlights from the great events featuring FIJI Water. Those of you who have been reading this blog for a while may remember David as the force behind the fabulous FIJI Water chandelier featured at a Chicago fashion event. Yeah, he’s kind of awesome.

Although St. Patrick”s Day is just behind us, we are going to keep the “green” drinks coming to you all year. Next stop: Miami, FL, where from March 24th-28th FIJI Water will be keepin” it cool on a HOT town for the 2009 Winter Music Conference.

An important stop for the world”s most renowned DJs and musicians, Miami”s Winter Music Conference is a haven for music”s newest beats and trends, hosting a veritable “who”s who” of celebrities and international jet setters for a five day extravaganza of sights and sounds.

As the darling beverage of Miami, FIJI Water will be the exclusive bottled water served at the hottest locations of the Winter Music Conference.

Look for us at the infamous Raleigh Hotel, home to BMF Media”s “A|X Music Lounge,” a place where celebrities, musicians, and music industry insiders will come to relax amid the frenzy of WMC performancesÖand for them only the finest tasting water will do. To add a “green” touch to the lounge, FIJI Water recycling will be provided to ensure each guest enjoys their FIJI responsibly.

On the weekend you”ll find FIJI Water lounging poolside at the posh Fountainebleau Hotel, Miami”s premier beach resort and home to LIV, the area”s hottest new nightclub.

Special guest performances at LIV by DJ AM and Subliminal Sessions will ensure the parties jump until the wee hours of the night.

Things are only just starting to heat up around here as we quickly approach spring and a host of fantastic FIJI Water sightings across the country. Be sure to stay dialed in to the FIJI Green Blog for next month”s inside track on the Sonoma Jazz Festival from my pal, Marssie.

Stay green!

FIJI Water comes from an artesian aquifer rich in silica.

One of the qualities that makes FIJI Water so special is its high silica content. FIJI Water starts as rain and is filtered through volcanic rock, which is rich in silica, for over a hundred years until it reaches the aquifer. FIJI Water”s incomparable taste — the soft mouth feel and silky texture — is a result of its unique mineral profile, with high silica and low calcium and magnesium content. (While calcium and magnesium are important to our diet, high levels in water can make it taste “hard” and unpleasant.)

And a recent study indicates that silica in water may reduce Alzheimer’s risk. Here’s more info, courtesy of Reuters Health.

Aluminum, silica in water affect Alzheimer’s risk

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Higher levels of aluminum in drinking water appear to increase people’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, whereas higher levels of silica appear to decrease the risk, according to French investigators.

“Alzheimer’s disease is a multifactorial disease, and aluminum concentrations in drinking water may have an effect on cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease,” Dr. Virginie Rondeau told Reuters Health.

The results of some studies suggest that silica reduces the oral absorption of aluminum or increases the excretion of this metal.

Rondeau, at the Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale in Bordeaux, and her colleagues examined associations between exposure to aluminum or silica from drinking water and the risk of cognitive decline, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease among elderly subjects followed for 15 years.

Daily aluminum intake of at least 0.1 milligram was associated with greater cognitive decline during the course of the study, the team reports in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

Subjects with a high daily aluminum intake had a 2.26-fold increased risk of dementia, the researchers note. On the other hand, for every 10 milligram-per-day intake of silica, the odds of developing dementia dropped by 11 percent.

“Further studies are needed to settle the debate over the link between aluminum or silica in drinking water and neurologic disorders and cognitive impairment,” the investigators conclude.

SOURCE: American Journal of Epidemiology, February 15, 2009.

You would think some marketer at a technology company would have thought to include a voice recorder in the hospital goodie bag I received after my babies” delivery. I liked the free baby shampoos, diaper cr”me, and all thatÖbut I’d use a recorder more often and much longer! I would record the following: “Don”t touch,” “Careful,” and “Rocks are not food.” I”m sure battery companies would be grateful, but I digress…

In the spirit of this FIJI Water blog entry, it makes me think of our ad campaign “Untouched.” FIJI Water is untouched by man; I”ve been to Fiji and seen the factory. No one is yelling, “Don”t touch!” No one has to…FIJI Water”s state-of-the-art bottling facility is designed to protect the purity and quality of the water. It sits on top of an aquifer (which is like a huge, slow-moving, underground river), and the water is drawn into the factory straight into the bottle without human contact!

Now if I could only get my little ones to leave Mommie’s shoes and jewelry box “Untouched!”

FIJI Green Gal: We have another new writer joining our blog this week – our wonderful event coordinator Marssie! From time to time, she’ll give us the inside scoop on some of the exciting events where FIJI Water makes an appearance.

This week we are out and about with our fans, friends and fabulous fashionistas in New York at Fashion Week where FIJI Water, as always, is the hottest accessory around.

We love our customers, and they love us. Why? Because FIJI Water is the best tasting water you’ll find… and… because (for the third consecutive season) we gave six lucky fashionistas each a pair of tickets to attend a show during New York Fashion Week, compliments of FIJI Water. Just a little token of our appreciation.

FIJI fans entered to win one of six pairs of tickets to various shows/presentations at this year’s Mercedes Benz Fashion Week where lucky winners would get the opportunity to mix and mingle with designers and industry influencers and get up close and personal with the latest fashion insights and perspectives for Fall 2009.

Our winners Sana and sister Ghazal really enjoyed themselves at the Jill Stuart Show on Monday. They were each greeted with a bottle of FIJI Water, and before they sat down they spotted Jack from Project Runway.

During the show we received text updates, one informing us that they caught a glimpse of Paris Hilton. They truly loved the clothes, the music and all the hoopla.

If you’re a New Yorker – native, transplant or tourist – keep an eye out for FIJI Water at La Paulee de New York 2009 in March, Food & Wine Best New Chefs 2009 in April, and Saveur Chef Dinner Series in May. And, no matter where you are, make sure you come back to the FIJI Green blog in March to check out my buddy David, who’ll be bringing us a FIJI recap from the Winter Music Conference in Miami.

Happy hydrating!