The bottled water Trump drank during his press conference came from Fiji. And here’s why that matters.
US President Donald Trump takes a drink of water as he speaks about his recent trip to Asia in the Diplomatic Room of the White House in Washington, Nov. 15, 2017.
President Donald Trump's press conference on Wednesday recapping his two-week trip to Asia has been getting a lot of attention — and not only for the reasons the Trump administration intended.
During the press conference, Trump picked up and took a sip out of a water bottle with a label familiar to many of us: Fiji Water. A video of his drinking went viral.
"When I talk to big audiences about water I always ask: ‘How many people in the room think the water in the bottle is really from Fiji?’” said Charles Fishman, author of "The Big Thirst: The Secret Life and Turbulent Future of Water." "And almost no one in the audience thinks the water actually comes from Fiji."
But the bottled water does come from Fiji. Fishman visited the company’s plant a few years back.
“My impression of Fiji water when I got to Fiji was much different than the impression you would have trying to understand it from back here in the United States where we’re the largest market by far,” Fishman said. “Fiji Water is a little bit of a ridiculous product. No-one ever needs it. It’s a pure indulgence. But in Fiji it has a tremendous economic impact."
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