Does drinking Perrier sparkling water present a risk? This is what the Occitanie Regional Health Agency fears, which warns of a possible “viral risk” in an inspection report dated August 30. Revealed Monday December 16 by our colleges of Radio France and newspaper The World, This document follows a chance inspection from Nestlé's Perrier factory in Gard.
Last January, Radio France and The World already revealed the use of prohibited treatments in Hépar, Vittel, Contrex and Perrier waters. Since then, the Nestlé Waters group has ensured that all these illegal treatments had been abandonedbut the conclusions of the ARS report raise questions.
The latter emphasizes that the use of certain unauthorized treatments, in particular UV lamps and carbon filters, have ceased on the Vergèze site, but adds “the conditions for carrying out the inspection did not make it possible to ensure that there were no other unauthorized processing devices concealed within the plant.
Perrier risks losing its “mineral water” name
If the water marketed by Perrier is subject to such treatments, it could lose its “mineral water” designation which normally guarantees the stability of the composition of the water. A stability which is not there according to the conclusions of the ARS which reveals that the quality controls carried out by the Nestlé group note the presence of microorganisms in the water.
Prohibited contamination and “unacceptable for natural mineral water”emphasize the inspectors. Last April, three million bottles of Perrier were destroyed because they were contaminated with fecal germs. She invited Nestlé Waters to “strategically examine another possible food use of the exploitation of current mineral water catchments”.
Contacted by AFP, Nestlé Waters assured that it “operates” the Vergèze site in accordance with the framework set by the authorities and under their control and did not wish to make further comments “since we are not aware of the final report”, they clarified.
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