Bottled mineral waters: big brands in the sights for prohibited purifications

Europe 1 with AFP / Photo credits: Serge Tenani / Hans Lucas / Hans Lucas via AFP 6:26 p.m., January 30, 2024

The practice of using prohibited treatments to purify mineral waters could be more widespread. According to "Le Monde" and Radio France, it would concern a third of brands in France. A government source assures “that no health risk linked to the quality of bottled water has been identified at this stage”.

Is the use of prohibited treatments to purify mineral waters, recognized on Monday by the Nestlé group, broader? This practice would concern a third of brands in France,

Le Monde

and Radio France reported on Tuesday, with a government source refuting any “health risk”. Taking the lead, the world number one in mineral water Nestlé Waters revealed Monday in the press that it had used banned ultraviolet treatments and activated carbon filters on some of its mineral waters (Perrier, Vittel, Hépar and Contrex) to maintain “their food safety” and to have informed the authorities in 2021.

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“No health risk linked to the quality of bottled water has been identified”

The government then entrusted the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs (Igas) with a “mission to inspect natural mineral water and spring water packaging plants” in France, the conclusions of which, submitted in July 2022, were were disclosed Tuesday by

Le Monde

and Radio France. According to the Inspection's conclusions, "the work revealed that nearly 30% of commercial designations undergo non-compliant processing", write the two media. At the very least, because "the mission (of Igas) has no doubt about the fact that (...) all ore carriers are concerned".

A government source explains to AFP that "this report contains data subject to business secrecy" and is therefore not intended to be made public. But she assures “that no health risk linked to the quality of bottled water has been identified at this stage”. “The implementation of non-compliant treatments raises the question of the designation 'natural mineral water' or 'spring water', to the extent that these waters are supposed to be naturally pure and to have undergone a limited number of treatments. But from a health point of view, the implementation of these treatments strengthens health security,” says this source.

In its investigation, Radio France nevertheless underlines that according to the Igas inspectors, if "overall", the "level of conformity is high for bottled water, it would not be prudent to conclude that the health risk is perfectly controlled, particularly microbiological risk.

Nestlé Waters, the Alma group... These companies targeted by an investigation

A judicial investigation was opened - in Epinal according to

Le Monde

and Radio France - following "breaches of regulations" noted on Nestlé Waters sites by the ARS (regional health agencies), as part of the mission of Igas, specifies the government source. The water giant is not the only one targeted by an investigation. The Alma group, which produces around thirty brands of bottled water in France including Cristaline, Saint-Yorre and Vichy Célestins, confirmed to AFP that it was the subject of "legal proceedings" relating to "old facts and isolated specific to certain production sites". Crystalline water “was never targeted,” he insisted.

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Originally, it was a former employee of the Alma company who reported “suspicious practices in a group factory” to the fraud repression (DGCCRF) at the end of 2020, and the latter then transmitted its investigations to the public prosecutor’s office. from Cusset (Allier), according to

Le Monde

and Radio France. Cusset prosecutor Eric Neveu must decide "by the end of the week" what follow-up to be given to this "very technical" file, for acts of "deception on the nature or quality of a commodity", he said. he told AFP on Tuesday.

Waters subject to strict regulations

Like Nestlé, Alma rules out any health risk for consumers. “All the checks by the health authorities showed that our waters were healthy,” Alma assured AFP. At Nestlé Waters in Vittel (Vosges), a social and economic committee (CSE) met on Tuesday. “The company is not being transparent about this matter. (...) We are asking for accounts, we are asking for the history,” Yannick Duffner, CFDT delegate of the site, told AFP.

Natural and spring mineral waters are subject to strict regulations in France, resulting from a European directive. It prohibits any disinfection by ultraviolet or activated carbon filters. The practice of microfiltration is authorized up to a certain threshold. According to

Le Monde

and Radio France, Nestlé Waters had requested from the French government a relaxation to modify this threshold fixed from 0.8 microns (µm), and won its case in February 2023. Without Paris informing the authorities European, affirm these two media.

The government source interviewed by AFP indicated that the practice of microfiltration below 0.8 µm was authorized by prefectural decrees, "in view of the absence of a standard explicitly prohibiting" lowering this threshold.