Yesterday, First Lady Michelle Obama joined the Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) to celebrate new commitments from the tap water industry to support Drink Up.

Brita, The California Endowment, Haws, Nalgene, S’well, First 5 Santa Clara County, and the Santa Clara Valley Water District all made commitments to help support the initiative and encourage everyone to drink more water. Through their commitments, these organizations and companies are promoting the Drink Up message through water filtration systems, re-usable water bottles, and hydration stations in schools and communities to ensure kids and families have access to clean drinking water and can drink water more often to stay healthy.

First Lady Michelle Obama and children from a DC YMCA and Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation show off a Drink Up logo during an event on the South Lawn of the White House, July 22, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

In addition to these commitments, the First Lady also shared some successes of the campaign since its launch last fall. Mrs. Obama highlighted a new study from Nielsen Catalina Solutions (NCS), which found that a recent online ad campaign for Drink Up fueled a 3 percent lift in incremental sales of bottled water among those exposed to the campaign.

“So make no mistake about it, when we make a real effort to promote healthy products, when we put as much energy and creativity into marketing healthy products as we do for junk food, then kids actually get excited about these products, and families actually buy them and consume them,” Mrs. Obama said. 

First Lady Michelle Obama joins children from a DC YMCA and Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation for a Drink Up event on the South Lawn of the White House, July 22, 2014. (Official White House Photo by Amanda Lucidon)

Following the announcement, Mrs. Obama headed out to the South Lawn to join children from Anthony Bowen YMCA in Washington, DC and Carver Community Center, part of Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation, for a fun activity where they built a giant water droplet out of re-usable water bottles. Even though it was a hot day in our Nation’s Capital, we made sure to stay hydrated with lots of water!

In case you missed it, check out the First Lady’s remarks and the activity on the South Lawn: