Home carbonation systems

It seems like every person is on the green war path. Now more than ever, one’s moral compass leans toward environment-friendly practices, taking small or big steps into alleviating the world from pollutants and helping give Mother Nature its beauty back again, if not better. However, if that sounds a bit too much for a start, the adage that everything begins at home applies here. In relation to that, making your own soft drinks at home may just fit the bill.

Soda magic

Is it really possible to turn plain water into a carbonated soda drink in just 30 seconds? Apparently, the brand SodaStream claims that such a miracle is easy and possible as a piece of cake. Now based in Israel, the English brand traces its origins to 1903 England when Guy Gilbey invented an “apparatus for aerating liquids” to cater to the British upper crust. Over the years, SodaStream has developed a series of home carbonation systems that has penetrated its way not only in the households of England, but in 36 countries as well. Recently, it made its debut in the Philippines through Max.Ideas Marketing Corporation. In a press briefing, Max.Ideas Marketing Corporation’s Chief Operations Officer Charmaine Chua gave members of the media the skinny on what makes SodaStream products a great addition to one’s kitchen and the benefits the environment can possibly reap through the line.

Basically, a modest starter kit of SodaStream uses no electricity nor is it battery dependent. Instead, a carbon dioxide (CO2) cylinder plays a pivotal role to start operating your own soft drinks maker. The cylinder is attached to the device provided in the kit that comes with its own BPA-free and durable bottles (BPA-free bottles guarantee no toxic components to endanger one’s health and SodaStream’s bottles have a life span of three years, which also reduces one’s plastic bottle consumption since it can be reused all over again). The bottles are filled with water and are then secured along with the device. A few presses on top will pump CO2 gas into the water, producing carbonated/sparkling water as a result. Then, should you wish to add soda flavoring, simply unfasten the bottle and add some syrup/s from the brand’s signature line. Shake the bottle for a few seconds and—voila!—there goes your own personalized soft drink.

Home-made soft drink helps lessen the amount of plastic bottles that end up as unrecycled junk that is detrimental to the environment. This is backed up by the US Recycling Institute’s research showing that “an estimated 4.5 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions were produced   in the process of replacing the 134 billion bottles and cans not recycled in 2005.”

Jumpstarting a green lifestyle does begin at home.

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SodaStream products are available at all SM Snack Exchange counters nationwide, Metro Gaisano Ayala (Cebu), store branches of Hobbes and Landes, Metro Gaisano Ayala Sta. Lucia Department Store, and Automatic Center Cubao. For more information, please visit www.sodastream.com.ph.