August 20, 2009

CEO Letter: BPA & Metal Bottles

Dear Friends of CamelBak:

I wanted to reach out to you today regarding some confusion and questions that have surfaced about metal water bottles stemming from a recent industry trade article about aluminum bottles and Bisphenol A (BPA). You may know that BPA is a chemical used in liners for metal food and drink containers and is the focus of an ongoing health debate.

In the article, aluminum water bottle makers SIGG and Laken acknowledged that, until August 2008, the liners in their bottles contained BPA. It also states that since that time, SIGG’s new BPA-free aluminum bottles have been sold alongside older versions containing BPA, unbeknownst to some retailers and consumers.

Amid the potential concern about metal water bottles that this article may cause, I wanted to reassure you that CamelBak’s stainless steel bottles are BPA-free, and are clearly marked as such on the bottle packaging. For plastic water bottle fans, CamelBak was first-to-market with a BPA-free hard plastic bottle in January 2008.

I want to be very clear about what we mean when we say “BPA-Free” – it means there is no BPA in our materials, and thus no BPA in the liquids that people drink from our bottles. We back this claim with continuous testing of our materials conducted by an internationally-recognized independent lab.

When we decided to make metal bottles in kid and adult sizes, we purposely chose to use medical-grade stainless steel because it does not require a liner. Aluminum water bottle liners have been a topic of concern in the industry for many years. The added benefits of stainless steel are that it’s dent-resistant, stain-resistant and taste-free.

While health organizations continue to debate the possible risks associated with BPA, we chose to avoid the use of BPA in our metal bottle line to alleviate consumer concern.

We hold ourselves to very high standards, and we are confident that we can keep your trust in CamelBak and our products. In doing this, we will also move closer to our goal of making disposable plastic water bottles obsolete.

We understand that this issue can be confusing and may cause concern about products you’ve purchased. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us at 800-767-8725 or product@camelbak.com.

Best regards,

Sally McCoy
CEO
CamelBak Products LLC