Founder and CEO Steven Sedlmayr developed the advanced filtration system about 12 years ago, and spent nearly a decade studying the water it produced. He collaborated on research with several universities, including Penn State and Loyola Marymount, to determine the suitability of the water for human consumption.
He began selling it out of his garage and eventually transformed it into a family business when his wife and children joined. It’s now sold online and at select retailers in the northwest, formulated with no added sodium, sugar, flavoring or electrolytes.
Healing, hydrating and sustainable
Divinia is responding to modern consumer demands for clean and functional healthy water with its patented filtration system. It calls its water 'renatured water' - removing the effects of man.
"Our unique, eco-conscious approach brings water back to its original, unadulterated form. The steps we take recreate the natural formation of water far beneath the earth's surface, where hydrogen and oxygen from heat and rock combine to make clean, pure H2O," the company said.
All Divinia water is packaged into glass bottles to move away from plastic bottles that it describes as 'potentially toxic' (The company cites a recent study that found that 93% of all bottled water tested contained microplastics - prompting the World Health Organisation to launch a review into the potential risks from such particles).
Other water sources can also be contaminated with micro-debris and chemicals, including tap, spring and rain water. Sedlmayr’s water claims to eliminate these risks and also claims to be scientifically proven as both exclusion zone and deuterium depleted water, or lighter water more easily absorbed by the cell.
Divinia bills itself as a ‘new category’ of functional water and explains its properties make it more bioavailable and more hydrating to the cell. Sedlmayr shared that several customers have reported that drinking Divinia has made them physically healthier in cases such as allergies, kidney complications and even cancer, though these claims have not been backed with medical evidence.
“We’re entering into a clinical trial to prove that this water will help the kidneys and the liver functions so that we’ll have a medical, FDA-approved clinical trial,” Sedlmayr told BeverageDaily.
Deploying locally and globally
He described Divinia as a solution to contaminated water across the country and around the world. By formatting the filtration system to fit into 8ft x 20ft shipping containers, they can be deployed to designated central hubs and even sites of natural disasters, “keeping resources local, increasing local employment and reducing carbon emissions.”
The system can also permeate the commercial sector in sports and entertainment venues, campuses and hotels. Sedlmayr said it can be used to make coffee, wine, beer, juice and in any other beverage that uses water.
But until Divinia secures enough capital funding, these plans cannot be realized. It reached its current, first round of fundraising of $107k for building out more machines and installing new equipment at the company’s 14,000 square foot facility in Idaho just to keep up with existing orders.
It is planning future rounds of fundraising for $1m and $5m that will be the key to unlocking Divinia’s true potential and possible global impact. The company is also engaging investors to help speed up the process and scale up the team to fulfill consumer demand.
“Every ounce of water we can make right now, we have an order for,” Sedlmayr said.
