Water brand Ballygowan is to be the exclusive provider of bottled water for McDonald’s restaurants in Ireland. The contract had been held by French company Vittel.

Managing director of McDonald’s Ireland Adrian Crean said the switch to Ballygowan was part of the company’s commitment to buy Irish “wherever we can”.

Ballygowan is one of a number of Irish brands owned by Britvic Ireland. Britvic acquired the portfolio of soft drinks from CC in 2007 for €249.2 million.

McDonald’s sells 1.25 million bottles of water in Ireland annually for adults and children.