Nestle Egypt withdraws coliform-contaminated bottled water products

Nestle Egypt has started to withdraw some of its bottled water products from the market as a “precautionary measure” after local health authorities declared them contaminated last week, the company said on Saturday in a statement.

 The statement noted that the company “is making every effort to ensure the safety of its products and compliance with local and international health and safety standards.”

The company specified that Nestle Pure Life 1.5 litre bottles produced on 17/03/2016, Nestle Pure Life 0.33 litre bottles produced on 13/03/2016, Baraka 1.5 litre bottles produced on 01/03/2016, and Baraka 0.6 litre bottles produced on 10/03/2016 will all be withdrawn from sale.

An official directive dated May 2016 and confirmed last week by health ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed showed that coliform bacteria – which usually indicate the presence of fecal matter – were found in samples of Nestle Pure Life and Baraka Water bottled water produced by Nestle Water Egypt.

Live protozoa were also found in samples of PepsiCo-produced Aquafina bottled water. Both coliform bacteria and protozoa make the bottled water “unfit for human consumption.”

According to an April 2013 report by the Egyptian Competition Authority, Aquafina and Nestle Pure Life controlled 71 percent of the bottled water market.

source: Ahram Online