“Mahirap makipagbakbakan nang may LBM.”
This was posted on Facebook by a soldier who fought in the five-month-long armed conflict in Marawi City after it was occupied by Islamic State-inspired extremists. It may sound comical at first, but it reflects the grim situation on the ground, especially in rural areas, where potable water is not readily available.
This was precisely what the people behind Southlight Technology and Distribution sought to address in bringing to the country the Tulip Table Top, a water purification device invented by Dutch firm Basic Water Needs.
Southlight managing director Wilbert Cua said they discovered BWN in the aftermath of super typhoon Yolanda in 2013 as the Dutch company supplied the product to survivors of the catastrophic cyclone that leveled most parts of Eastern Visayas and hit eight other regions across the country.
“Initially, we were not impressed. The product looked too simple. Our initial questions then: Is it effective? Can it really produce clean, potable water?” he shared during the media launch of the Tulip Table Top at the Wilcon City Center in Visayas Avenue, Quezon City.
They decided to test the water filter system and, in what appears to be a leap of faith, used the murky waters of Pasig River as test sample.
“The test administrators were asking us if we would like to reconsider as we have to pay the P40,000 testing fee whether we pass it or not. They told us our product would not pass because it looks so simple. They suggested we use a different water source, but decided to push through with the test,” recalled Cua.
The simple-looking, easy-to-assemble, easy-to-use, and easy-to-maintain Tulip water filter passed the test with flying colors in 2016, and it has certificates from the Department of Health and the Food and Drug Administration to back up its claim.
“And then the Marawi Crisis happened. We decided to move a few hundreds of our water filter product to Marawi City. Some wives of soldiers bought our products, too, and sent these to their husbands who were to be deployed in the battle area,” said Cua.
Annemarieke Maltha, head of business development of BWN, said the Tulip Table Top product is present in 35 countries and services close to 2.5 million people across the globe.
“Tulip products are based on gravity, which implies that no electricity or complicated processes are involved. The filter can be used in emergency situations as well as for daily usage,” explained Maltha.
Tulip water filter’s presence in the Philippines could not have come at a more opportune time.
In mid-March, a report by US-based non-profit media collective Orb Media showed that the world’s leading brands of bottled water are contaminated with tiny plastic particles that are likely seeping in during the packaging process. “Widespread contamination” with plastic was found in 93 percent of the samples, with researchers testing 250 bottles of water in Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Lebanon, Mexico, Thailand, and the United States.
The safety of potable water remains a huge concern, with data from the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund showing that at least 663 million people are still without access to clean drinking water. At least eight in 10 people without access to clean water live in rural areas, and many of those deprived communities are in remote, hard to reach areas.
“We are dedicated to bringing safe water the world. Our commitment is to make clean, potable water accessible and build a sustainable supply chain for this,” enthused Maltha.