Yeah, I was under the impression they only came in glass so the fact that they have the lowest amount of plastic could implicate the bottle itself as the primary source.
Perhaps the low amount in SP is from that seal in the bottle cap?
None of these brands are known to me but I believe I've seen San Pelegrino in the south of Europe, the balkans.
Iirc their bottle is a thick stiff bottle type, of the same type that my favorite bottled mineral water Ramlösa uses.
Maybe someone could confirm this.
Whenever I see bottled water in american TV it's always that cheap wrinkly bottle. That type is always cheaper here in Sweden.
Depending on where you get it, the difference between a cheap wrinkly soft plastic bottle and a thick stiff plastic bottle of water can be 100%. From 10kr to 20kr.
San Pellegrino is an italian brand, and it's quite common in Europe, not just in the south. Most of the time, you'll find soft drinks from that brand rather than water, though.
Edit: Was an italian brand until Nestlé bought it, it seems.
I have family that buys the Costco brand and of many of the plastics it seems very thin / flimsy compared to some of the more expensive brands. I'd be surprised if it weren't comparable to some of the higher leaching bottles just based on feel and cost.
I've always been curious about plastic milk containers vs Tetra Paks as well. Beyond bottled water there are so many other liquids consumed out of plastics I feel as though there aren't many alternative options that wouldn't impede the cost of shipping (aluminum/glass) that consumers would be willing to pay for.
I refused to buy the Costco brand because of this while my wife was pregnant and only drank bottled water. The bottles felt too cheap. Ended up getting a brand with more sturdy bottles (no idea if they were actually safer, but all things being equal I went with the product that didn't seem like it was cutting as many corners).
Is there evidence that a thin plastic bottle would leech more?
I thought the transition to thin plastic was partly due to increase crushability of the bottles and to reduce plastic use. Though that can also be considered as marketing speak.