- Laws of Fiji

Last Updated: 5 April 2019

22.2 Standard on packaged natural mineral waters

22-2

(1) In this Standard, unless the context otherwise requires—

natural mineral water

is water clearly distinguishable from ordinary drinking water because—

(a)it is characterised by its content of certain mineral salts and their relative proportions and the presence of trace elements or of other constituents;
(b)it is obtained directly from natural or drilled sources from underground water bearing strata for which all possible precautions shall be taken within the protected perimeters to avoid any pollution of, or external influence on, the chemical and physical qualities of natural mineral water;
(c)of the constancy of its composition and the stability of its discharge and its temperature, due account being taken of the cycles of minor natural fluctuations;
(d)it is collected under conditions which guarantee the original microbiological purity and chemical composition of essential components;
(e)it is packaged close to the point of emergence of the source with particular hygienic precautions; and
(f)it is not subjected to any treatment other than those permitted by this standard.

naturally carbonated natural mineral water: is a natural mineral water with reincorporation of gas from the same source and after packaging taking into consideration usual technical tolerance, has the same content of carbon dioxide spontaneously and visibly given off under normal conditions of temperature and pressure; and

carbonated natural mineral water: is a natural mineral water that has, after packaging, been made effervescent by the addition of carbon dioxide from another origin.

(2) Natural mineral water shall be recognised as prescribed in the Bottled Water Standard 2004, established as a mandatory standard under the Trade Standards and Quality Control Act 1992.

(3) Treatments permitted include separation from unstable constituents, such as compounds containing iron, manganese, sulphur or arsenic, by decantation and/or filtration, if necessary, accelerated by previous aeration; and carbonation or decarbonation treatments specified in the Codex Standard 108 and its revisions.

(4) The transport of natural mineral waters in bulk containers for packaging or for any other process before packaging is prohibited.

(5) Natural mineral water in its packaged state shall contain not more than the following amounts of the substances indicated either hereunder or in the Bottled Water Standard 2004, established as a mandatory standard under the Trade Standards and Quality Control Act 1992 —

(a)Arsenic 0.05 mg/1, calculated as total As;
(b)Barium 1.0 mg/1;
(c)Borate 5 mg/1, calculated as B;
(d)Cadmium 0.005 mg/1;
(e)Chromium 0.1 mg/1, calculated as total Cr;
(f)Copper 1 mg/1;
(g)Cyanide 0.07 mg/1;
(h)Fluoride 2.2 mg/1;
(i)Lead 0.05 mg/1;
(j)Manganese 0.3 mg/1;
(k)Mercury 0.002 mg/1;
(l)Nitrate 10 mg/1, calculated as nitrate;
(m)Selenium 0.05 mg/1;

(6) All other chemical contaminants shall be at or below the limit approved by the Bottled Water Standard 2004, established as a mandatory standard under the Trade Standards and Quality Control Act 1992.

(7) The products covered by the provisions of this standard shall be prepared in accordance with the hygiene requirements of Schedule 4 of these Regulations and in accordance with the hygiene requirements expressed in the Bottled Water Standard 2004, established as a mandatory standard under the Trade Standards and Quality Control Act 1992.

(8) The following specific hygienic practices shall be applied by food business operators to packaged natural mineral water and these shall be applied in addition to the general hygiene requirements specified in subparagraph (7) —

(a)the food business operator shall implement a documented food safety plan based upon good hygienic practices and HACCP principles and this plan shall be being actively implemented and subject to auditing by December 2010. After that date an operational and approved food safety plan shall be required for any natural mineral water processing premises to be licensed under the Food Safety Act 2003 and its regulations;
(b)all possible precautions shall be taken to avoid any pollution of, or external influence on, the quality of the water source;
(c)the installations intended for the production of natural mineral waters shall be such as to exclude any possibility of contamination. For this purpose, and in particular—
- (i)the installations for collection, the pipes and the reservoirs shall be made from materials suited to the water and in such a way as to prevent the introduction of foreign substances into the water;
- (ii)the equipment and its use for production, especially installations for washing and packaging, shall meet hygienic requirements; and
- (iii)if, during production it is found that the water is polluted, the producer shall stop all operations until the cause of pollution is eliminated.
(d)water supplies shall be tested by food business operators regularly for constancy of biological (including microbial), chemical, physical and, where necessary, radiological characteristics. The frequency of testing shall be adequate to ensure the safety of the water supplies and shall be prescribed in the food safety plan required in subparagraph (8)(a);
(e)bottling operations (ie filling and sealing of containers) shall be conducted in a manner that protects against contamination. Control measures include the use of an enclosed area and a containment enclosed system separate from other operations of the processing plant to protect against contamination. Dust, dirt, micro-organisms in the air, and condensation shall be controlled and monitored;
(f)reusable containers shall not have been used for any purpose that may lead to contamination of the product and shall be individually inspected for suitability. New containers shall be inspected and, if necessary, cleaned and disinfected;
(g)closures are generally supplied in a ready to use state and shall be tamper resistant; they are not reusable.

(9) During marketing, natural mineral water—

(a)shall be of such a quality that it will not present a risk to the health of the consumer (absence of pathogenic micro-organisms);
(b)furthermore it shall be in conformity with the following microbiological quality specifications identified in Schedule 12.

(10) In addition to the general labelling requirements prescribed in the Act and these Regulations, the following provisions shall apply—

(a)the name of the product shall be “natural mineral water”;
(b)the following designations shall be used in accordance with Codex Standard 108 and its revisions and may be accompanied by suitable descriptive terms (eg, still and sparkling)—
- (i)Naturally carbonated natural mineral water;
- (ii)Non-carbonated natural mineral water;
- (iii)Decarbonated natural mineral water;
- (iv)Natural mineral water fortified with carbon dioxide from the source;
- (v)Carbonated natural mineral water;
(c)the location of the source and the name of the source shall be declared;
(d)the analytical composition giving characteristics to the product shall be declared in the labelling;
(e)if the product contains more than 1 mg/1 of fluoride, the following term shall appear on the label as part of, or in close proximity to, the name of the product or in an otherwise prominent position—
- (i)“contains fluoride”;
- (ii)in addition, the following sentence shall be included on the label: “The product is not suitable for infants and children under the age of 7 years” where the product contains more than 2 mg/1 fluorides;
(f)no claims concerning medicinal (preventative, alleviative or curative) effects shall be made in respect of the properties of the product covered by the standard;
(g)claims of other beneficial effects related to the health of the consumer shall not be made unless true and not misleading;
(h)the name of the locality or specified place may not form part of the trade name unless it refers to a natural mineral water collected at the place designated by that trade name;
(i)the use of any statement or of any pictorial device which may create confusion in the mind of the public or in any way mislead the public about the nature, origin, composition and properties of natural mineral waters put on sale is prohibited.

(11) Where this Standard is in conflict with the Bottled Water Standard 2004, established as a mandatory standard under the Trade Standards and Quality Control Act 1992, this Standard shall prevail in aspects related to food safety and hygiene.