The International Bottled Water Association has named Primo Brands Corporation (NYSE: PRMB) its 2026 Environmental Stewardship Award winner, citing the company's expanding network of local watershed funds that channel grant dollars to conservation and habitat restoration projects tied directly to its spring water sources. The award was presented at IBWA's annual conference at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn.
The Watershed Funds
The recognition centers on three regional stewardship funds that mirror a model Primo Brands first developed more than two decades ago in Michigan. The Ice Mountain® Environmental Stewardship Fund has operated for 23 years in Michigan's Muskegon River Watershed, with its most recent grant round distributing $78,100 across six local organizations through the Fremont Area Community Foundation. Funded projects include buffer zone additions and tree canopy expansion along the Clam River, as well as wetland restoration at Camp Newaygo following a 2024 brushfire.
In March 2026, Primo Brands replicated that model for two additional regional brands. Arrowhead® Mountain Spring Water launched a fund in Southern California's Santa Ana River watershed, and Ozarka® Texas Spring Water launched a parallel fund in the San Jacinto Watershed serving the Houston region. Each new fund launched with $250,000 in initial funding as part of a four-year, $1 million commitment, administered by the Inland Empire Community Foundation and the Greater Houston Community Foundation, respectively. The two new watersheds together span more than 8,000 square miles and serve more than 12 million residents, with grant priorities ranging from wildfire fuel reduction and habitat restoration to groundwater resilience and flood risk management.
Why It Matters for Operators
For foodservice and hospitality operators who source bottled spring water at scale, supplier sustainability credentials are an increasingly visible factor in procurement decisions and brand positioning. Primo Brands' portfolio — which includes Poland Spring®, Pure Life®, Arrowhead®, Deer Park®, Ice Mountain®, Ozarka®, Zephyrhills®, and Saratoga®, among others — reaches more than 200,000 retail outlets and serves hotel, hospital, and foodservice accounts across every U.S. state and Canada. Operators leaning into sustainability messaging on menus or in guest communications have a concrete story to tell when that water comes from a supplier with verified, third-party-recognized conservation commitments.
"Every one of our regional spring water brands comes from specific spring sources, and the health of the sources matters not just today, but to the local community for generations to come," said Charles Fogg, Chief Sustainability Officer of Primo Brands, who accepted the award alongside Senior Natural Resource Manager Greg Fox.
The watershed funds are one element of a broader water stewardship platform that includes conservation of more than 28,000 acres of recharge land surrounding Primo Brands' more than 80 springs. In 2025, the company replenished 400 million gallons of water locally and has set a goal of 100% water replenishment in high water-stress areas by 2035, detailed in its 2025 Sustainability Report. The award marks the second such recognition for the company's legacy entities — IBWA gave its 2022 Environmental Stewardship Award to Primo Water Corporation before it merged to form Primo Brands.
For broader context on how water stewardship is reshaping beverage supply chains, see our beverage industry analysis and our coverage of sustainability trends across restaurants and hospitality.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
