Wide Appeal, Klean Kanteen™Introduces Wide-Mouth Collection

Finally. With competitors and copycat companies popping up left and right, Klean Kanteen™, the leader in the stainless steel bottle industry, has released a wide-mouth line of stainless bottles.

Klean Kanteen™ was the first company to make a bottle designed for personal hydration from stainless steel, a healthy, sustainable alternative to plastic and aluminum bottles.

“Almost immediately after we released the first Klean Kanteen™ Classic bottles in 2004, people started asking us to make a wide-mouth bottle that could replace their Nalgenes™,” said Jeff Cresswell, co-owner of Klean Kanteen™. “One of our goals with the wide-mouth bottle was to make the interior 100% stainless steel, which meant we had to completely re-engineer the thread design and the caps.”

The wide-mouth bottle was in the works when news about bisphenol-a (BPA) and the health hazards of plastic use exploded in the media. The phones at Klean Kanteen’s headquarters in Chico rang off the hook. Backorders piled up. They struggled to find the cash to manufacture enough bottles to meet the skyrocketing demand. And development of the wide bottle was put on hold.

The dust has cleared. In one year, Klean Kanteen™ grew ten-fold, quadrupled staff and finished designing and testing the wide-mouth bottles. Klean Kanteen™ Wide bottles will debut at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market July 21-24.

The opening of the Klean Kanteen™ Wide bottles is the same size as old-school plastic bottles and is easy to fill and pour from. All Wide Kanteens have stainless steel, external threads in a universal design so they work with most backcountry filters.

“Designing the external threads on the wide bottle required thoughtful engineering and meticulous craftsmanship,” Cresswell said. “The external threads are essential because they make it possible to offer a cap with a stainless interior on all wide bottles that’s cost effective and highly functional.”

The plastic on the caps is made from polypropylene (pp#5), a plastic that has been extensively tested and doesn’t contain BPA or other harmful or toxic chemicals. The Klean Kanteen Wide comes with the Stainless Loop Cap, and the multi-purpose Flip D-Ring Cap is available as an accessory.

Klean Kanteen™ Wide bottles are available in Brushed Stainless finish in five sizes: 12, 18, 27, 40, and 64 ounces. All caps are stainless steel. Cost: $16.95 to $34.95 (MSRP).

General features of Klean Kanteen bottles

Each Klean Kanteen™ is made from separate pieces, joined and welded by hand then electropolished for a shiny finish. The bottles are made from 18/8, food-grade stainless steel, which is BPA- and toxin-free. It’s one of the safest, healthiest materials available. Klean Kanteen™ bottles don’t need a plastic or epoxy liner like aluminum bottles, which have to be lined to keep chemicals from seeping into drinks.

Klean Kanteens™ are designed with radius (rounded) corners and large, rounded, sweeping threads so they’re easy to clean with no hard angles or sharp corners where dirt and bacteria can stick.

The thickness of the bottle walls is a carefully researched balance between weight and durability. The testing process at Klean Kanteen™ includes numerous controlled scientific tests, but the staff in Chico have also run over the bottles with cars, jabbed them with knives and bashed them against boulders. The bottles are designed to last a lifetime and don’t dent easily.

About Klean Kanteen™

Klean Kanteen™ is a family-owned business founded in 2004 and based in Chico, Calif. The founders of the company were concerned about both the environmental impacts of plastic use and the early research linking certain plastics to a growing list of illnesses including cancer, heart disease and diabetes.

Klean Kanteen™ bottles were created to give people an environmentally friendly, healthy alternative to plastic and aluminum bottles. They are responsibly manufactured in China at a partner facility that adheres to strict environmental and labor standards.