Three major bottled water brands banned in Punjab    

ISLAMABAD: Three major renowned bottled water brands failed to meet quality standards and declared unsafe for human consumption in Punjab.

The brands including Aquafina, Kinley and Springley were banned on the laboratory report of Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) where the bottled water samples were sent for testing.

Official sources informed APP that samples of 14 companies were tested in the laboratory of PCSIR on the request of Punjab Food Authority (PFA). The companies went through the testing phase included Aquafina, Sufi, Kinley, Aqua Safe, Blu Water, Sparkle, Kinz, Naimat, Bottle Water, Pure Drinking Water, Nestle Pure Life, Murree Sparkletts, Zam Zam and Springley.

However, according to report not a single one of these companies met the criteria of being labeled as ‘mineral water’ but 11 passed the test to be labeled as ‘Plain or Safe water.’       PFA has suggested the companies to use `plain and safe water’ rather than misguiding people using `mineral water’ for their product.

According to the tests, hazardous material, including germs and chemicals harmful to human health, were found in the water samples taken from these companies.

The authority has immediately banned these companies to stop their production and call back their stock that is already in the market.