Qatar withdraws some bottled water

Doha: Qatar's health authorities are pulling bottled water from three countries off the shelves after laboratory tests indicated it was unfit for consumption, a local Arabic daily reported on Monday.

The Qatar National Health Authority said on Sunday that some brands of bottled water distributed in the local market did not abide by international health standards but refused to provide their names, the Al Raya newspaper said.

"The authority has stopped imports of bottled water from three countries, but it has not named the countries or the brands. It said the risks posed to human health were very limited," the daily wrote, quoting an health official.

Al Raya earlier last week issued another report saying that at least 10 brands of bottled water available in the local market posed risks to public health.

By-product

The report raised concerns among consumers and prompted the authority to call a press conference on Sunday to dismiss the news and state that 'most brands' were safe. However the authority officials admitted that tests on water samples showed some brands exceeded the World Health Organisation's recommended limits for a specific chemical product.

"We have conducted tests and the results show that bottled water available in the market does not pose any immediate threat to public health. Tests have also shown that only a few brands contain a chemical by-product of the sterilisation process conducted on plastic bottles," said Dr Gail Fraser Chanpong, director of the Department of Public Health.

Dr Gail said the scientific evidence of the harm caused by such chemical on human health was minimal.

Gulf News' calls to the authority to demand clarification on the name and countries of origin of the brands remained unanswered.

On Sunday the authority said it has now made it compulsory for companies to obtain an additional laboratory certification for the mineral content in the water.