Patagonia severs SIGG relationship, claiming 'chagrin'

The relationship between SIGG USA, manufacturer and marketer of hip, trendy aluminum water bottles -- the green alternative to plastic bottles -- and Patagonia, outdoor goods retailer and a company known for its environmental activism, seemed made in heaven.

The two companies sealed their love for one another and the earth by creating a co-branding and co-marketing agreement. The touchstone? An advertisement in Outside Magazine and Backpacker depicting Patagonia founder and owner Yvon Chouinard holding a SIGG bottle with a 1% for the Planet logo on it.

And then, oops. SIGG owned up to its long-held secret: the lining of its bottles was formulated with BPA, one of the plastic chemicals that parents and young consumers were spending big bucks to avoid in alternatives like Nalgene bottles.