Has anyone heard of any of this?

Berkey and the difficulty finding replacement filters, I wanted to explain what is happening with the company based on information I've been able to glean from online resources.

BOTTOM LINE: The parent company of Berkey products, New Millennium Concepts, has been involved in multiple lawsuits for the past couple of years. These involve the EPA as well as individuals and, in one suit, a business partner; this has affected the production and distribution of their products.

One of the core issues is that multiple third-party lab tests show that these filters do not live up to the advertised claims. This may have drawn the attention of the EPA and they are involved with stopping the sale of Bekey filters and are in a lawsuit against the company.


Here are a few links so you can do your own research:
New Millennium Deceptively Touts Berkey Water Filters, Suit Says (January 2021, paywall but perhaps some of you might have a subscription)
Links to "stop sale, use, or removal order from the EPA (December 2022)
Berkey Water Filters Sues the EPA (August 2023 -- this suit has just been dismissed)
Murky Business. Berkey and the EPA. (November, 2023)
VIDEO: Berkey Water Filters Under Attack (November, 2023)
Despite the rumors, Berkey Water Systems is Not Going Out of Business (December 2023)
Berkey lawsuit court documents (lots to read here)
MY CONCLUSIONS, SO FAR

At this very moment, I have a Berkey sitting on my counter, next to my fridge. That filtered water is what we use every day for coffee, tea, and drinking.

I've been a Berkey fan for 15 years, and the brand has been recommended consistently on my website and in my courses.

However, I've always been troubled by their resistance to any transparency and having third-party testing done to reinforce their claims.

There are only so many conclusions one can draw from that, and none of them reflect well on the Berkey brand.

The owner's claim that by not hiring a third-party lab to test their filters keeps costs down for consumers is laughable. Berkey filters are among the most expensive on the market.

"Berkey's response to complaints of its filters not having NSF/ANSI certification is that it conducts its own independent lab tests to check for "far more contaminants than the applicable NSF certifications." The brand also states that required fees make NSF certification overly expensive, and they prefer to pass on the savings to customers." (Greenmatters.com)

Honestly, from a business point of view, this makes no sense. A company producing, what they claim is the best water filter should be eager to have that testing done and then proudly advertise the results. As well, other brands have their filters tested so why not Berkey?

I'll continue to use my Berkey but when it comes time to purchase replacement filters, I will buy a different brand. I've just started to research those other options, and some of you have already shared with me the brands you use and have come to trust.

Legal problems very quickly drain financial resources, and a path forward where New Millennium Concepts and the Berkey brand recover from this appears to be bleak -- from this non-legal-expert's point of view (mine).

Your thoughts?

I'll be back on Sunday with my weekly newsletter.

All my best,

Lisa

P.S. Here are links to two of my articles on the topic of water: Water Storage 101 and All About Water Purification.

https://thesurvivalmom.com/all...-water-purification/

https://thesurvivalmom.com/water-storage-101/

This message has been edited. Last edited by: downtownv,

Yes.

They've been misleading people for years.

I tried to buy replacement filters last night and saw this issue:

quote:

October 16, 2023
Without any administrative process, the EPA used its regulatory authority to classify the company’s gravity-fed mechanical water filters as pesticides under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) due to its incorporation of silver.

https://gaetz.house.gov/media/...ration%20of%20silver.

I think this has been brewing for years. I wanted a Berkey for a while based on their reputation, but cost prevented it. I finally got to a point in my life where I had discretionary income, so I started shopping around. I ended up finding a lot of people saying the Berkey didn't do what it was supposed to. Berkey's total refusal to provide any evidence that their product actually did work really turned me off, and I didn't buy one. I see it's gotten a lot more serious since then, and they still haven't shown any evidence that their products actually do anything. It doesn't look good to me.

Natural News, Mike Adams who has tested them interveiw with company owner.
https://www.brighteon.com/1ee1...e7-9bea-e4b080b4f0ba

I went with Doulton ceramic filters in my Berkey. I haven't used their filters for years.

I wonder what percentage of purchasers are just filtering safe tap water just to improve the taste.

*Edited to fix link *

Had a recent conversation with a friend about Berkey, and looked this up. So if I read this correctly, there is ongoing and unnecessary legal issues with EPA which has now affected some distributors. Others remain -at least in UK. The second link was coincidental timing with a water filter test posted on Wideners. The testing was on different scenarios and claims to be independent. Learned a lot even if I'm not a current user of any of these. hope it helps.

“It’s sort of the wild west out there in the water filter industry,” Dr. George Lukasik, director of BCS Laboratories, an accredited water testing facility in Gainesville, Florida said.

epic water filter test

Berkey page, from UK I think.

support

R

quote:

Originally posted by preten2b:

epic water filter test

Very informative. Thank you for posting.

I have a Berkey for home use. While I'm on a well, my water contains a lot of iron and iron bacteria. The Berkey handles it fine.

I've kept a Grayl bottle in the get-home-bag and an H20 Survival "straw" for being out and about in the woods for a number of years now.

I'm perhaps over-protective of myself in this regard, as for decades I'd lay on the ground and drink directly out of creeks, streams, and lakes as need be with never a problem. Then I saw a fella go through giardia and thought, "nope".

The Grayl and the "straw" were the best when I was researching them and it appears that they still are.

"have a Berkey for home use. While I'm on a well, my water contains a lot of iron and iron bacteria. The Berkey handles it fine."

Curious as to which lab you used ? Please

I am considering getting a test done