Flint Michigan Resident Starts Black-Owned Bottle Water Company to Provide Clean Water to His Community
Alex Love’s Garden of Y.O.U.T.H. Alkaline Water was created to help his city in a time of crisis. (Photo courtesy of Alex Love)
Alex Love, 32, grew up in Flint, Michigan—the epicenter of the water crisis that began in 2014 when government officials changed the water source of the city to save money—causing lead poisoning, Legionnaires' disease, and other chronic illnesses that have impacted the people who live there.
While going to school at Tennessee State University for a Masters of Public Health in Cultural Competency, some people in his community trusted Love to help solve this problem. So in 2016, Love proposed a solution.
“I was an intern at the time at a water plant down there in Tennessee…and people were calling me while I was in school during the water crisis, and the people from back home who were calling me kept saying, ‘Alex you're so smart, you could do something about this,’” Love said. “Then two or three people called me with the same type of conversation in that same week, and after that, I started to think…maybe I am smart enough to do something about this.”
Love’s bottled water is delivered to a market in Flint, Michigan. (Photo courtesy of Alex Love)
Love’s water, Garden of Y.O.U.T.H. Alkaline Water, uses a proprietary process to make its water alkaline. Alkaline water’s premise is a pH scale, where one is the most acidic and 14 being the most basic, or alkaline. Regular water has a pH of 7, whereas most Alkaline water uses a process to make its pH either an 8 or 9. Alkaline water must also “contain alkaline minerals and negative oxidation reduction potential (ORP). ORP is the ability of water to act as a pro- or antioxidant,” according to Healthline. While the benefits of alkaline water have proven to be controversial, a few studies have shown that it can prevent acid reflux, be beneficial for people with high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol, and more recently, a study showed a difference in whole blood viscosity, which helps more oxygen reach your lungs.
Garden of Y.O.U.T.H. Alkaline Water is available for sale online. (Photo courtesy of Alex Love)
“It's all about becoming more healthy and taking in the best amount of water that you can from the best source.If you’re made up the 80% water and you're drinking the best, I think that water on the inside of you will cleanse,” Love said.
There have been a lot of changes to Love’s business since 2016. At first, he was producing every bottle by hand. Now, he has a production facility in California. His face is on the bottle, so when he goes into the community people would know about him. He’s hoping to have his water available in big box stores.
“Jumping off with a Black business is not that easy. People want to know who you are; they're asking ‘who made it, who is the CEO, do ya’ll know him?’” Love said. “It's about being comfortable with my customers. I had to get out there on foot for like my first two or three years in the community, giving our water [and] just making a name for myself.”
Although Flint’s water has had a lot of changes, and many of the victims of the water crisis are coming up on a substantial settlement, many people say it’s not enough. The scandalous past over the last seven years of lying about the quality of the water on multiple occasions has left many people harmed by the lasting effects. It also created a severe distrust among the community who refuse to use the water coming from their faucets, some of whom report are still experiencing the same symptoms. Love hopes his product is making a difference in their lives.
“When our water crisis hit, that made a lot of people unhappy. A lot of people migrated, a lot of people moved. These are intelligent thinkers,” Love said. “These are people that have brilliant types of talent, and that comes from here. When something like that goes on in your city, it brings resilience out in a time of crisis.”
To purchase Garden of Y.O.U.T.H. Alkaline Water, click here.
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