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- Global Water Drinks Awards 2020
Global Water Drinks Awards 2020
The industry's only Global Water Drinks Awards are designed to celebrate excellence and innovation across every category of the packaged water industry. The awards are a great way for you to enhance your brand and ensure your product, concept or campaign is recognised on an international scale. The winners will be announced on 21 October 2020, during Zenith Global's 17th Global Water Drinks Congress.
Details
Our guide below should provide you with all the information you need about the Global Water Drinks Awards.
Please note, entries must be received by Friday 21 August 2020.
If you have any queries, please contact us on t +44 (0)1225 327900 e awards@zenithglobal.com
What are the categories?
- Best Natural Still Water
- Best Natural Sparkling Water sponsored by Sidel
- Best Flavoured Water
- Best Functional Water
- Best CBD Water
- Best New Brand/Brand Extension
- Best New Water Concept
- Best in Can sponsored by Ball Beverage Packaging
- Best in Carton
- Best in Glass
- Best in PET
- Best Packaging/Label Design sponsored by Güitig
- Best Cap/Closure
- Best Technology Innovation sponsored by Bericap
- Best Marketing/Social Media Campaign
- Best CSR Initiative
Products can be entered into multiple categories.
If you enter 3 categories, the 4th entry is free.
Why should I enter?
- Benefit from leading industry media
- Enjoy year-round exposure
- Dedicated announcement of your success on our social media platforms
- Attract validation for present and potential future investors
- Comprehensive communications kit complete with press release, logos to use on packaging, website or email signatures; certificate; and a trophy for winners!
- Opportunity to have sample product at an awards ceremony during Zenith Global's Global Water Drinks Congress to an audience of senior industry managers, suppliers, retailers, advisers and trade press.
How much does it cost to enter?
Early bird entry (enter before Friday 10 July) costs £195 + VAT per category.
Each standard entry costs £225 + VAT per category.
If you enter 3 categories, the 4th entry is free.
All entries must be received before close of business on Friday 14 August.
How do I enter?
There are two stages to the entry process.
1. Simply click 'Enter Now', select the categories and products you wish to enter and then fill out your personal details.
2. Once we have received your application and payment, a member of the awards team will be in touch to support you on your submission for the awards. Entry guidelines can also be downloaded here.
What is required?
- One short presentation (one title slide, two slides of content) per entry made
- At least one high-resolution image of your product (or video of your campaign)
*If you are entering Best Marketing/Social Media Campaign or Best CSR Initiative, you qualify for one title slide, three slides of content.
Where are the winners be announced?
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on Wednesday 21 October 2020 during Zenith Global's Global Water Drinks Congress, as well as being live-streamed.
When will the finalists be announced?
Once all judges have submitted their feedback and scores, all points will be counted and verified.
A press release will be released announcing the finalists. All entrants and finalists will be notified by the end of September 2020.
How do I contact you?
If you have a query about the awards, get in touch!
t +44 (0)1225 32900 e awards@zenithglobal.com


Entry Criteria
We are delighted that you are planning to enter the 2020 Global Bottled Water Awards. Here are some guidelines and instructions to help ensure you increase your chances of winning and submit the correct information about your product/campaign/initiative/innovation. Download the full entry guidelines here.
All products entered must have been launched/created/re-branded from January 2018 onwards. If you have a product that is not yet in the market, it can still be entered as long as they are in their prototype/packaging/ stage by the closing date of this awards scheme.
Best Natural Still Water
Judged on
- Innovation
- Flavour
- Mouthfeel
Samples are required for this category.
Best Natural Sparkling Water
Judged on
- Innovation
- Flavour
- Mouthfeel
Samples are required for this category.
Best Flavoured Water
To qualify as a flavoured water, fruit juice content should exceed 25% of the product content.
Judged on
- Innovation
- Flavour
- Mouthfeel
Samples are required for this category.
Best Functional Water
Judged on
- Innovation
- Market need
- Execution
- Presentation
- Functionality of product
Samples are required for this category.
Best CBD Water
Judged on
- Innovation
- Execution
- Presentation
- Functionality of product
Samples are required for this category.
Best New Brand/Brand Extension
Judged on
- Innovation
- Functionality
- Differentiation
- Design/Appearance
Samples are not required for this category.
Best New Drink Concept
Judged on
- Innovation
- Differentiation
- Uniqueness of concept
- Value proposition
- Presentation of concept
Samples are not required for this category.
Best in Can
Judged on
- Appearance
- Innovation of concept
- Product/Initiative differentiation
- Commercial/market impact
Samples are not required for this category
Best in Carton
Judged on
- Appearance
- Innovation of concept
- Product/Initiative differentiation
- Commercial/Market impact
Samples are not required for this category.
Best in Glass
Judged on
- Appearance
- Innovation of concept
- Product/Initiative differentiation
- Commercial/market impact
Samples are not required for this category.
Best PET
Judged on
- Appearance
- Innovation of concept
- Product/Initiative differentiation
- Commercial/market impact
Samples are not required for this category.
Best Packaging/Label Design
Judged on
- Innovation
- Functionality
- Differentiation
- Design/appearance
- Expression of product
Samples are not required for this category.
Best Cap/Closure
Judged on
- Value
- Functionality
- Ease of use
- Innovation
- Recyclability
Samples are required for this category.
Best Technology Innovation
Judged on
- Degree of improvement from previous technology
- Degree of improvement from incremental to ground-breaking new concept
- Value of benefit in cost-saving, efficiency, improvement and breadth of application to the wider industry.
Samples are not required for this category.
Best Marketing/Social Media Campaign
Judged on
- Innovation
- Conceptualisation
- Execution
- Responses
Judged in proportion to the budget spent, i.e. low-budget or localised campaigns will not be expected to generate as great responses and the execution is evaluated with the budget limitations in mind.
Samples are not required for this category. You may submit a video of your campaign (no longer than 1 minute, 30 seconds) alongside your presentation.
Best CSR Initiative
Social, community and environmentally-focused corporate responsibility campaigns and initiatives or externally oriented or could be very local or national/international.
Judged on
- Innovation of social, community and environmental sustainability presentation
- Evidence of sincerity and commitment to the initiative
- Changes mad relative to effort/money put into the initiative
Samples are not required for this category. You may submit a video of your campaign (no longer than 1 minute, 30 seconds) alongside your presentation.




The Judges

Duane Stanford
Executive Editor of Beverage Digest
Duane is Executive Editor of Beverage Digest, a newsletter covering the non-alcoholic drinks business. Previously, he spent 23 years at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Bloomberg News.
His experience in the beverage industry spans more than a decade. While at Bloomberg’s Atlanta bureau, Duane was a regular contributor to Business week magazine and to Bloomberg television and radio. He also appeared on programs including NPR’s Marketplace. Most of Duane’s time at the AJC was spent covering local, state and federal government, as well as politics. He joined the Business Desk in 2006 to cover beverages.

Dr. Peter Schropp
Member of the Executive Board at Doemans Academy/Water Sommelier Union
Peter is a Member of the Executive Board at the Doemens Academy in Munich, and is Course Director for the unique Water Sommelier education in German and English language.
Peter is also Lecturer for alcohol-free beverages and water/mineral water at diverse institutes, and Managing Director of the Water Sommelier Union (WSU) – the association of all educated and experienced Water Sommeliers throughout the world. Peter has a PhD in Food Chemistry at the Technical University of Munich

Michael Cervin
Senior Editor of BottledWaterWeb.com
Michael Cervin has been the Senior Editor of BottledWaterWeb.com for twelve years, writing about every aspect of the bottled water industry.
He is the author of “Our World of Water: The Good, the Bad & and the Ugly of Earth’s Most Critical Resource,” and his own water blog, This World of Water. Michael has been both water judge and watermaster at the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting for over a decade, and was invited by the Chinese government to participate in the Golden Headwater Protection Summit in Beijing, where he conducted water tastings for 80 Chinese media. He has also been a judge and presenter at the Global Bottled Water Awards in Prague. He has appeared on TV and in print as a water authority including Fox News Health, OT Television, The Tasting Panel, Draft, Food & Beverage World, Planet Experts, Water Quality Products Magazine, and many others.

Rachel Arthur
Editor of BeverageDaily.com (William Reed)
Rachel is a business to business journalist for BeverageDaily.com. She covers both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage sectors. Her key skills include features writing, video filming/editing and sub-editing.

Maurizio Patarnello
Former CEO of Nestlé Waters
Maurizio Patarnello graduated from the University of Bologna with a degree in business administration. He is also a graduate of the IMD Business School and has an MBA from STOA Business School.
He joined Nestlé, the large Swiss F&B company, in 1993 where he has spent the majority of his career. He held various positions in finance over six years before joining San Pellegrino. He took on different positions of increasing responsibility at Nestlé Waters and overseas, notably in the Middle East region, before being appointed to the position of Market Head in the Ukraine and then Russia. He was CEO of Nestlé Waters from January 2017 through to 2019. Nestlé Waters is the bottled water division of the Nestlé Group. Its leading brands are Perrier, S. Pellegrino, Nestlé Pure Life, Vittel and Contrex.

Yasemin Bradley
Nutrition and Diet Consultant
Yasemin Bradley is a Medical Doctor, Nutrition & Diet consultant, and renowned Turkish television broadcaster and media expert.
She presented in a weekly series educating families on health and nutrition, touring Anatolian villages and seeking advice from centenarians on natural foods for longer life while preparing healthy recipes. These programmes continue to broadcast regularly. She is a business consultant to food companies and a regular guest contributor to numerous programmes and TV advertisements as a diet and nutrition expert. She is also the author of many books from children’s education to political biography.
Sponsorship
Category sponsorship
- The opportunity to present the winner with their award at the awards reception
- Company logo on all awards marketing material between now and the event
- Company logo on the awards page of Zenith Global's website with a hyperlink to your company homepage
- The sponsor will always be reference in the category title e.g. Best Natural Still Water sponsored by Company X
Categories
- Best Natural Still Water
- Best Natural Sparkling Water
- Best Flavoured Water
- Best Functional Water
- Best in Can
- Best in Carton
- Best in Glass
- Best in PET
- Best Packaging/Label Design
- Best Cap/Closure
- Best Marketing/Social Media Campaign
- Best CSR Initiative
- Best Technology Innovation
- Best New Brand/Brand Extension
- Best New Drink Concept
What do sponsor packages include?
All packages can also include discounted delegate places to the 2020 Global Water Drinks Congress, as well as pre and post event social media and marketing exposure.
We are happy to tailor a bespoke package to suit your particular needs and budget.
Interested in sponsoring?
To download our 2020 events exhibitor and sponsorship opportunities please click here.
For more information on our sponsorship packages, contact Lisa Solovieva on e lsolovieva@zenithglobal.com or t +44 (0) 1225 327341




2019 Winners
The winners of the 2019 Global Bottled Water Awards were announced on 9th October at an awards ceremony held at the iconic Burj Al Arab, during the 16th Global Bottled Water Congress in Dubai.
The awards were organised by global food and drink experts Zenith Global with support from category sponsors AF Compressors, Guala Closures Group, Reflective Shopper, Sidel and WET Group (Beverages).
The winners

Best Natural Still Water - sponsored by Sidel
- Cedea Srl - Dolomites' Luxury Mineral Water
Best Natural Sparkling Water
- Lofoten Arctic Water AS - Lofoten Arctic Sparkling Water
Best Flavoured Water - Sponsored by WET Group (Beverages)
- Danone - Font VElla Levité Limón Zero
- Flow Alkaline Spring Water - Flow organic cucumber + mint flavoured water
Best Functional Water
- WET Group (Beverages) - WECAN Alkaline CBD Water
Best Can
- Stiftsquelle - LANDPARK BIO-QUELLE
Best Glass
- Cedea Srl - Cedea Luxury Mineral Water
Best PET - Sponsored by AF Compressors
- Carpathian Spring - AQUA Carpatica
Best Packaging/Label Design
- Cedea Srl - Dolomites' Luxury Mineral Water
Best Cap/Closure
- Lofoten Arctic Water A.S - Lofoten Arctic Sparkling Water
Best Marketing/Social Media Campaign - Sponsored by Reflective Shopper Worldwide
- JUST Goods - JUST Water Australia Launch
Best CSR Initiative - sponsored by Guala Closures Group
- Sociedade Águas Vumba, SA - Vumba Mountain Reforestation Project
- Thunderbird Spirit Water - Thunderbird Spirit Water
Best Technology Innovation
- Birštono Mineraliniai Vandenys – Eco Pack by Akvile
Best New Brand/Brand Extension
- Flow Alkaline Spring Water - Flow Alkaline Spring Water
Best New Water Concept
- AQUAGEN Europe BV - AQUAGEN Deep Ocean Sparkling Water
- Knajz Miloš – Aqua Viva Vitamin
2019 Finalists
The finalists for the 2019 Global Bottled Water Awards are published. The winners were announced at an awards ceremony held at the iconic Burj Al Arab on 9 October, during the 16th Global Bottled Water Congress in Dubai.
The awards are organised by global food and drink experts Zenith Global with support from category sponsors AF Compressors, Guala Closures Group, Reflective Shopper, Sidel and WET Group (Beverages).
This year’s awards attracted 120 entries from 23 countries across 6 continents.
The finalists

Best Natural Still Water – sponsored by Sidel
• A.L.B Spa – Smeraldina Natural Mineral Water
• Cedea Srl – Dolomites’ Luxury Mineral Water
• Ice Age Water Ltd – Vellamo
• Lofoten Arctic Water AS – Lofoten Arctic Water
• Thunderbird Spirit Water – Thunderbird Spirit Water
Best Natural Sparkling Water
• A.L.B Spa – Smeraldina Natural Sparkling Mineral Water
• AQUAGEN Europe BV – AQUAGEN Deep Ocean Sparkling Water
• Cedea Srl – Dolomites’ Luxury Sparkling Mineral Water
• Lofoten Arctic Water AS – Lofoten Arctic Sparkling Water
Best Functional Water
• Essentia Water – Essentia Water
• Knjaz Miloš – Aqua Viva Vitamin
• Siete Cuarenta Natural S.L. – REFIX Atlantic Sea Water
• Vitness – Vitness Collagen Water
• WET Group (Beverages) – WECAN Alkaline CBD Water
Best Can
• IDS Borjomi International – Borjomi The Best Festive Design
• Life Water – Life Water
• Aqua Minerale San Benedetto – San Benedetto Mineral Water in a Can
Best Carton
• A.L.B Spa – Smeraldina Water Box
• JUST Goods – JUST Water
• Stiftsquelle – LANDPARK BIO-QUELLE
Best Glass
• A.L.B Spa – Smeraldina Griffe
• Cedea Srl – Cedea Luxury Mineral Water
• Lofoten Arctic Water AS – Lofoten Arctic Water
• Thunderbird Spirit Water – Thunderbird Spirit Water
Best PET – sponsored by AF Compressors
• A.L.B Spa – Smeraldina Natural Mineral Water
• Carpathian Spring – AQUA Carpatica
• Danone – Lanjarón 100 RPET
• Essentia Water – Essentia Water
• Hijos de Rivera – Cabreiroá 1L 50% recycled PET
Best Packaging/Label Design
• A.L.B Spa – Smeraldina Griffe
• Cedea Srl – Dolomites’ Luxury Mineral Water
• Hijos de Rivera SA – Cabreiroá Minions
• IDS Borjomi International – Borjomi The Best Festive Design
• King Island Cloud Juice Pty Ltd – King Island Cloud Juice 750ml
• Lofoten Arctic Water AS – Lofoten Arctic Sparkling Water
• Thunderbird Spirit Water – Thunderbird Spirit Water
Best Cap/Closure
• Danone – Lanjarón Tethered Cap
• Essentia Water – Essentia Water
• Lofoten Arctic Water AS – Lofoten Arctic Sparkling Water
• Varahi Ltd – ISKA Still Natural Mineral Water
Best Marketing/Social Media Campaign – sponsored by Reflective Shopper Worldwide
• Danone – Font Vella Gamers
• Essentia Water – Essentia Water
• Flow Alkaline Spring Water – Flow Alkaline Spring Water
• JUST Goods – JUST Water Australia Launch
• VOSS Water – VOSS’ #LiveEveryDrop
Best CSR Initiative – sponsored by Guala Closures Group
• Sociedade Águas Vumba, SA – Vumba Mountain Reforestation Project
• EARTH Concepts – EARTH Water
• Goodwill Water – Goodwill Water
• Thunderbird Spirit Water – Thunderbird Spirit Water
Best Technology Innovation
• Birštono Mineraliniai Vandenys – Eco Pack by Akvile
• Danone – Font Vella Coach20
• WET Group (Beverages) – Activated Enhancement System
Best New Brand/Brand Extension
• ãlkalife – ãlkalife Naturally Alkaline Mineral Water
• Carpathian Spring – AQUA Carpatica
• Flow Alkaline Spring Water – Flow Alkaline Spring Water
• Stiftsquelle – LANDPARK BIO-QUELLE
• Thunderbird Spirit Water – Thunderbird Spirit Water
Best New Water Concept
• AQUAGEN Europe BV – AQUAGEN Deep Ocean Sparkling Water
• Danone – INFINIT Water
• Knajz Miloš – Aqua Viva Vitamin
• National Mineral Water Company – Go Juicy