OREANDA-NEWS. July 25, 2012. Think the cleanest, clearest, most contaminant-free water has to come from a bottle? Think again. GE offers the most advanced water filtration system in the industry as part of its recently launched French door refrigerators. The first-of-its-kind water filtration system has been tested and verified by an independent third party to remove 98 percent of five trace pharmaceuticals, including ibuprofen, atenolol, fluoxetine, progesterone and trimethoprim, from water and ice.*

According to a 2010 study conducted by The Stevenson Co. on behalf of GE, consumers rated the protection of their water supply as their number-one environmental concern. In fiscal year 2010,

10 percent of all community water systems—serving more than 23 million people—sold water to consumers that violated at least one health-based EPA standard.‡ And, an Associated Press investigation of tests conducted by water suppliers all over the country found low concentrations of dozens of pharmaceuticals in drinking water—including antibiotics, aspirin, blood pressure medications and antidepressants.‡

Among the reasons pharmaceuticals end up in our water supply is consumers flushing them down the toilet without realizing where they might end up. Or, if products are tossed in the trash, they often wind up in landfills, where they can seep into groundwater—and ultimately can come through water taps.‡

 “Water treatment plants do a great job of cleaning our water, but they can’t always filter out all contaminants, and trace pharmaceuticals are left in the drinking water that comes into our homes,” said John Boyd, refrigeration marketing manager for GE Appliances. “Through advanced technology, the water filters from our new GE® French door refrigerator remove 98 percent of contaminants and deliver cleaner, clearer, easily accessible drinking water.”

 Easy Access and Replacement
In addition to delivering cleaner water to consumers, the new filters also are easy to remove and replace. The French door refrigerators’ water filter is conveniently and newly located on the door panel, allowing for quick and easy filter replacement in the GE Profile™ and Cafй™ models.

When it comes to replacing the filter, GE realizes consumers are busy and the last thing they’re going to remember on their looming to-do list is ordering a water filter. To help ensure filtered water from the refrigerator all year round, GE offers the SmartOrder program.

SmartOrder allows consumers to set up automatic reorders so they receive water filters every six months without having to physically go out to the store or go online to purchase one. They simply input their model, sign up for the program and their credit card is charged every six months as a new filter is sent, free of shipping charges. In the future, reordering will be even easier with a setting that allows consumers to receive notifications on their smartphones when it comes time to replace a filter.

Not sure which water filter is right for your refrigerator? GE offers a simple refrigerator filter finder tool, which guides consumers through easy steps to help them find the right filter for their refrigerator.

Delivering Freshness Where Fresh Can’t Be Found
To support its mission of delivering freshness, GE's French door refrigerator is part of a campaign journeying to places where fresh food and water aren’t always readily found. GE’s “Freshpedition” campaign began when GE loaded a French door refrigerator onto the back of a truck and traveled more than 2,000 miles to bring fresh food and water to wildlife biologist Ron Thompson in the field where he lives primarily on canned food for months on end.

* Not all pharmaceuticals may be present in your water.