According to Nongfu Spring, the products tested were “natural drinking water” and the product ingredients in the test results table were “clearly marked as ‘natural water (deep lake water)”.
However, in its evaluation, the Consumer Council had placed Nongfu Spring’s product under the “natural mineral water” classification and compared it with different types of products, and assessed it based on EU “natural mineral water” standards.
“Nongfu Spring’s ‘natural drinking water’ products, even if adopting EU standards, should be evaluated against EU’s safety standards for “drinking water” and not “natural mineral water” standards,” the letter wrote.
According to EU drinking water safety standards, the level of bromate should not exceed 10 micrograms per litre.
“Nongfu Spring’s natural drinking water products (contain bromate levels of) 3 micrograms per litre, fully complying with drinking water safety standards in the regions above.”
The company also further argued that as its products are manufactured and sold in the mainland and Hong Kong, priority is placed on the regulations of the respective regions.
It stated that the consumer watchdog “forcibly applied” third-party standards that were not applicable on products sold in Hong Kong and did not consider the differences in production and technology.
“The conclusion drawn (by the Consumer Council) was unscientific and unreasonable,” said Nongfu Spring.
It also claimed that the language used by the Consumer Council was “unprofessional” and had the “deliberate intention to mislead”.
A SORRY COUNCIL
In a statement on Thursday (Jul 18), the Consumer Council said after a meeting with Nongfu Spring representatives, it has reclassified the company’s bottled water sample as “natural drinking water” and “re-scored the sample”.
The consumer watchdog said it had previously classified Nongfu Spring’s bottled water sample as “natural mineral water”.
The earlier classification was based on the content of the four types of minerals shown on its ingredient list, which was similar to that of “natural mineral water”, and Nongfu Spring’s label – “natural drinking water”, it explained.
According to the council, it understood that Nongfu Spring’s bottled water was not “natural mineral water” nor “purified water” but “natural drinking water”.
As only 3 micrograms per litre was within the range of European Union’s standards for bromate, Nongfu Spring’s bottled water is safe to drink. After “re-scoring”, the sample also had its rating raised from four and a half stars to five.
