In 2004 Klean Kanteen introduced the first personal hydration bottle made from stainless steel to give health and environmentally conscious people an alternative to plastic. We have yet to see another bottle company, stainless or otherwise, that makes a product comparable to our high quality, handcrafted bottles or that commits to strong environmental and labor standards.  Before anybody else was making stainless steel water bottles for personal hydration, before the health and environmental issues linked to plastic use were widely known, we were cobbling together the first Klean Kanteen prototype from things we bought at the local hardware store here in Chico, California.