Parque das Águas, São Lourenço, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil
Parque de São Lourenço is telling some of the history of its waters. Since the beginning of the nineteenth century, there were records on the existence of mineral water in the region. However, it was in 1826 that Antonio Francisco Viana found in his father’s lands a source of naturally gaseous and crystalline water.
Upon learning of these lands, in 1890, Commander Bernardo Saturnino da Veiga decided to acquire them and create the Mineral Waters Company of São Lourenço. Name, this, in honor of his father, Lieutenant Colonel Lourenço Xavier da Veiga. After two years, the first source of captured water was inaugurated, of the type: Gas.
After numerous successions, the company was taken over by Francisco de Souza Costa in 1929, who proceeded with the definitive collection of sources Gas, Magnesiana, Alkaline, Ferruginosa, Vichy and Sulfurosa, in a work that took 25 years. In 1935, under a new presidency, the zone of protection to the fountains, the construction of the Balneário, the creation of the pavilion of the factory, the end of the lake was established, as well as major transformations in the system of water bottling. A year later, the visit to the place, known as Parque das Águas, began to be charged.
In the 1960s, one of the major landmarks was the construction of the main gate of the park – the same to the present day. Already in the 1970s, the Perrier Group took control of the stock, improving water bottling and its commercialization. In addition, in the tourism aspect the development was reached in its fullness, registering a growing increase in the number of regulars and becoming necessary the implantation of a new park, attached to the existing one.
Parque II was established in 1986, with an urbanization project covering an area of more than 60,000 m². In addition, 2 new sources were collected – those of numbers 7 and 8. The source of number 9 appeared only in 1992. That same year Nestlé bought Perrier and started to take over the administration of the park.
Due to heavy flooding in 2000, the park and its factory were completely destroyed. The company then began a program of reconstruction of these areas. In 2008, the Spa was re-inaugurated.
Currently, São Lourenço Mineral Water, considered one of the best mineral waters in the world, is distributed by Nestlé Waters – Nestlé business unit, established in 2002, which established its position in the bottled water market.
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