Brita (company)

Brita GmbH is a German company which manufactures water filters.

This article is about the water filter company. For the New York City drag queen performer, see Brita Filter.
Brita
TypePrivately held family business
IndustryWater filtration
Founded1966 (1966)
FounderHeinz Hankammer
HeadquartersTaunusstein, Germany
Key people
Markus Hankammer (CEO)
ProductsWater filters
BrandsBrita (outside of the Americas), Mavea
Revenue€548 million (2019)
Number of employees
1953 worldwide (2019)
Websitewww.brita.com/intl/
Footnotes / references
[1]
A Brita kettle, boiling water that has passed from the top reservoir through a filter element (white) into the main jug at the bottom.

The company headquarters are in Taunusstein near Wiesbaden in Hesse, Germany. Manufacturing facilities are in China, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and the United Kingdom.[1] Brita products are distributed in 69 countries.[2]

Products
A used Brita ("Maxtra" type) water purification filter cross-section with activated charcoal particles (black) and ion-exchange resin beads (white).

Brita produces water jugs (BPA-free, made of styrene methyl methacrylate copolymer), kettles and tap attachments with integrated disposable filters. The filters can be recycled.[3]

Their primary filtering mechanism consists of activated carbon and ion-exchange resin. The activated carbon is produced from coconut shells.[4] According to Brita, the filters have two effects:[5]

  • The activated carbon removes substances that may impair taste, such as chlorine and chlorine compounds.
  • The ion-exchange resin reduces the carbonate hardness (limescale) as well as copper and lead.

In the United Kingdom, Hinari and Breville sell electric kettles incorporating Brita technology.

History

Brita was founded in 1966 by Heinz Hankammer. The company was first named AquaDeMat before he later named the company after his daughter.[6] The company secured the first patent for domestic water filter use in the 1970s.[7]

In 1988,[8] The Clorox Company, based in Oakland, California, entered in a licensing-and-distribution agreement with the German company for North and South America. In 1995, it added the Canadian rights by acquiring Canada's Brita International Holdings. In 2000, Clorox acquired the sole rights to the brand in the Americas[9] and Brita agreed to a non-compete clause until 2005. In 2008, Brita returned to the North American market under the brand Mavea,[10] only to withdraw again in 2016.[11] However, products are still sold in the US under the Brita brand.

References
  1. Facts & figures. Brita UK. Retrieved 2018-01-04.
  2. "About BRITA Group". Brita UK. Retrieved 2020-10-27.
  3. "Recycling service for cartridges," Brita UK. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  4. "Questions about products and water filtration," Brita UK. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  5. "How BRITA water filters work". Brita UK. Retrieved 2016-05-09.
  6. "The Start of Success". Brita. Brita. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  7. "Brita Opens the Door". Brita. Brita. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  8. HBS case 9-500-024, Jan 15th 2002, Page 1
  9. "Clorox Secures Brita Business In Americas", HomeWorld Business. November 27, 2000.
  10. Carr, Coeli (2010-05-20). "Pouring It On". Time Magazine.
  11. "The Best Water Filter Pitcher," Wirecutter. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
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