• For those who don't enjoy the taste of bottled water, filter carafes are useful; but filters are usually disposable.
• Italian startup Idra Water has patented a regenerable, plastic-free filtration system.
• This innovative system has been applied to the MY Idra filter bottle and the Idra Living filter carafe.

As highlighted by the 2024 report by The European House – Ambrosetti, Italy is the leading country in Europe for bottled mineral water consumption, with an average of 249 litres per capita (159 more than the European and British average). A figure that translates into disposal costs, CO2 emissions and the dispersal of microplastics into the environment. Yet tap water is compliant with legal parameters in almost all cases (99 per cent of instances). So what can be done? For those not accustomed to the taste of tap water, filter carafes come in handy — but between disposable filters and plastic components, are they truly a sustainable choice? Italian startup Idra Water answers this question, having patented a completely plastic-free, resin-free, natural and regenerable system. Here's how it works and where the project came from.

From China with love (for the Planet)

The low-environmental-impact water filtration system was conceived by designers Valentina Vecchia and Fabrizio Boscolo, who both have international experience in China, where their professional paths crossed. It was precisely while tackling the daily challenges of their work as industrial designers that they became aware of how much plastic is required to manufacture objects and appliances. They decided to join forces to do their part by rethinking systems through a plastic-free lens. Then the pandemic arrived, and with it a return to Italy.

Once back home, the two designers managed to combine technical expertise and love for the Planet into a solution aimed at reducing the consumption and dispersal of PET in the hydration sector. After all, as highlighted by a Columbia University study, one litre of bottled mineral water contains on average 240,000 particles — 90 per cent of which are nanoplastics. An alarming figure that shows just how much this pollution impacts not only the environment but also the human body, which effectively "drinks" plastic every day.

How Idra Water's recyclable filtration system works

Designed precisely to reduce the impact on both the environment and human health, generate zero waste and allow everyone to safely drink good water, the two-component system known as Claysilite was born. Made from natural and recyclable materials, these filters remove impurities, heavy metals, microplastics, PFOS, limescale and up to 97.5 per cent of the chlorine present in water, improving its taste and safety while at the same time preserving the minerals naturally present. The six-filter kit also includes an Idra Circle package for the free return of used filters.

Sustainable water prêt-à-porter

This innovative system has been applied to the MY Idra filter bottle and the Idra Living steel filter carafe, which allow you to always have pure water on hand at home or in the office, without resorting to single-use plastic or disposable filters. A sound practice that has already borne fruit in just a few years. It is estimated that, thanks to sales of the My Idra bottle, in 2023 alone 10,222 kilograms of plastic and as many as 81,776 kilograms of greenhouse gas emissions were avoided. In 2024, in just ten weeks from the start of sales of the new Idra Living product, the consumption of 459,134 plastic bottles, the production of 13,774 kg of waste and the emission of 168,720 kg of CO2 had already been avoided. A small green revolution making a genuine commitment, one sip at a time.