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From eating chaat at a nukkad to travelling via plane, train, or bus, one common denominator is a bottle of packaged drinking water. In cities like Noida where water is labelled unsafe to drink even when filtered using RO, people rely on these packaged bottles for a clean and safe supply of drinking water.
But what would you do if authorities labelled these water bottles under the ‘Highest Risk Food Category’? The latest report by FSSAI read, “As a consequence of the omission of the mandatory Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification for certain products, it has been decided that Packaged Drinking Water and Mineral Water will be treated under High-Risk Food Categories.”
This raises several questions regarding food safety and the distribution of edible items across the country. People are worried about whether there is anything that is being sold without adulteration or whether everything they are consuming has chemicals, dyes, toxins, and pollutants in them.
Packaged Drinking Water Under High-Risk Category
The order was issued with amendments in the Risk-Based Inspection Policy that included mineral water and packaged drinking water. The manufacturers supplying bottled water will have to undergo inspection once a year, and the authorities will look into their registration or license.
The order further added, “It is reiterated that all centrally licensed manufacturers under high-risk food categories shall get their business audited annually by an FSSAI-recognised third-party food safety auditing agency. The list of high-risk food categories now also includes packaged drinking water and mineral water.”
Why Is Packaged Drinking Water Included Under The High-Risk Category?
Despite strict regulations across the country, there have been many instances when bottled water was found contaminated with chemicals, heavy metals, pesticides, and more. This set off the alarm and raised concerns among authorities and consumers.
To address this issue, FSSAI has taken a step to scrutinise manufacturers. It will allow them to overlook the quality of water which will form the base for the registration or license manufacturers will hold. It will only benefit consumers in future as people trying to sell contaminated water in sealed bottles won’t be able to anymore.
