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Sigg Under Fire for Containing BPA
By
Jen Carlson
Published Sep 16, 2009
Modified Sep 17, 2009
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Sep 16, 2009
Modified Sep 17, 2009
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[UPDATE BELOW]
With bills to ban bottled water and New Yorkers urged to drink what's flowing from the tap, there's a good chance many of you have Sigg bottles. If only for the fact that Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood do. Well, bad news: Sigg has acknowledged the resin in bottles made before August 2008 have “trace amounts’’ of BPA (bisphenol A), prompting the Boston Globe to ask, "Et Tu, Sigg?" Not only is the controversial chemical the same one that brought Nalgene sales down, but the company has allegedly known of its presence in their bottles since 2006.
Salon points out that "BPA can leach into liquids and may pose health risks. BPA is classified as an endocrine disruptor and in scientific studies, even small amounts of BPA have been shown to seriously impair the hormone, brain and reproductive function of some animals." While many feel misled by the company, the CEO said (in his apology, which also offers an exchange) that the bottles were never marketed as "BPA Free." Author Nena Baker accused Sigg of "greenwashing," saying they "rode a wave of growing concerns about BPA, selling lot after lot of its products to people who believed they were reducing the risk of exposure to BPA by switching from reusable polycarbonate plastic drinking bottles."
Our very own John Del Signore has been drinking from a Sigg bottle every day for a year now, and as you can see from this photograph he's blissfully unaware of the damage it's doing. We've sent off an email to W.A.S.T.E., who still has the very same bottle for sale online. Reached for comment, Del Siggnore declared, "They'll have to pry my Radiohead Sigg bottle from my cold, dead hands."
UPDATE: A representative from Radiohead's merchandise company, W.A.S.T.E. sent us this: "Thank you for your email - we have been made aware that these bottles have been tested and do contain 0% of the BPA leach - please do worry." But according to Sigg's website, the lining of this Radiohead bottle looks exactly like the carcinogenic BPA copper lining! We're not scaremongering, this is really happening. Also, please do worry? That's you, isn't it, Thom?
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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