Beijing recalls bottled water that failed safety tests

Thirty-one brands of bottled water have been removed from sale in Beijing after they failed to pass safety tests.

It was discovered during random inspections that the bottled waters contained high levels of bacteria colonies, Beijing authorities said.

Yiqun is one brand of bottled water that has been removed from sale in the city after it was found to have 9,000 times more bacteria than the safety standards level.

Meanwhile, bacteria levels in Tianxing Special Water were reportedly 560 times above the safety threshold.

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It is thought that drinking water with high levels of bacteria in it can cause a number of health problems, including vomiting, diarrhoea and dizziness.

Authorities believe some of the problems have been caused during the production process and can be attributed to a break down in factory-based quality control practices, such as a failure to sterilise water pipes and filters.

The Beijing Administration for Industry and Commerce worked in partnership with the city’s product quality bureau to carry out the tests.

In a statement on their website the Administration explained the reason for the halt on sales, saying: “In order to prevent these substandard products from entering the distribution chain, the product quality bureau has taken measures to halt sales.”

This is the latest health scare in a long line of such incidences that have hit China in recent years.

Fruit, pork and milk have come to the surface in the last few months as being unsafe for human consumption, although 2008 saw China experience a mammoth health scare.

Six babies died and over 300,000 people fell ill with kidney stones after milk was found to be tainted with melamine.