DAGENS INDUSTRI
Stockholm, 28 March 2022
Tablets for Preppers
The war in Ukraine has led Swedes to want to be prepared for crisis periods with shortages of essential supplies. After water jugs and camp stoves, water purification tablets are now growing increasingly popular among preppers.
Over the past few weeks, many worried Swedes have reached out to the Swedish company Biocool for advice and tips about clean drinking water, including how to store drinking water in containers long-term.
”More and more people are aware that stagnant water in a sealed tank becomes unfit for use after just one week. When Russia invaded Ukraine, we started getting significantly more questions about clean drinking water. After the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) reminded the public of crisis preparedness guidelines last Thursday, demand rose even further”, says CEO Petra von Rohr.
The Swedish medtech company’s operations are split into two divisions: medical technology products for damaged skin, and biodegradable products for clean drinking and bathing water.
In 2021, drinking water products made up around 20 percent of annual revenue. In February and March alone, Biocool has already sold more water purification tablets than it did in the entirety of last year.
”Generally speaking, we Swedes have low crisis preparedness, which is natural because we have been spared from difficult times for a long period. Our neighbors in Finland, for example, have an entirely different approach to prepping. But a rapid shift in attitudes is now taking place here at home too”, says Petra von Rohr.
Are you able to deliver at the rate you would like right now, or is it difficult to source products?
”We still have sufficient stock in our warehouse to supply all our customers. It is possible that some retailers have sold out of their stock. We are currently working double shifts at our production facility in Gävle to fulfill those orders.”
The company’s water purification tablets are based on a Swedish innovation that allows drinking water to retain its quality for up to three months.
”According to tests, water becomes unfit for use after just a few days in containers that have not been treated with our tablet, and within a week it can be outright hazardous to health. Many Swedes are unaware of this. We in Sweden have been somewhat naive about crisis preparedness, but we have seen a rapidly growing interest in products needed for an extended period of isolation”, says Petra von Rohr.
What would you say to those who claim water purification tablets are 2020’s “toilet paper”?
”Of course we think it is far more relevant to secure access to safe drinking water during crises than to hoard toilet paper. Drinking water is, after all, life-critical.”
For additional information, please contact:
Petra von Rohr, Biocool AB
Phone: 0734-39 06 54
Email: petra.vonrohr@biocool.se