The public has been urged to only purchase registered sachet and bottled water that bears the FDA product registration numbers, according to the Bono Regional Director in charge of the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), Madam Akua Amponsaa Owusu.
This, according to her, is the only surefire means to verify that the drinking water is generated for the consumers’ consumption under safe and hygienic conditions.
The regional boss stated that the Public Health Act requires FDA to protect consumers.
And in order to make sure that the water produced in the area and sold in the markets is safe and meets the standard quality for public consumption, Madam Akua Amponsaa Owusu stated that the activities of the water producers, particularly in the Bono region, are closely monitored by the FDA as well as the Sanitation and the Environmental Department of the various Assemblies.
Madam Amponsaa Owusu said during a stakeholder engagement hosted by the Bono Regional Coordinating Council in Sunyani that her office always makes sure through routine unannounced inspection that the water used to make sachet and bottled water passes through various levels of distillation before putting them on the market for sale.
She claimed that all inspections are carried out in line with the most recent GMP codes and production procedures, such as filtering or reverse osmosis, which removes superfluous material, and UV sterilization, which eliminates potentially hazardous bacteria.
Moreover, Madam Amponsaa Owusu highlighted that their laboratory does routine testing as part of the registration procedure to determine the presence or absence of bacteria, which is an important factor in the safety of drinking water.
Meanwhile, the FDA’s regional administrator in Bono further reassured the public that the office regularly monitors the market and evaluates the quality of products that are on the market.
She claimed that as of right now, her organization has registered 145 sachet and bottled water items in the Bono Region, which equates to 96% of the products in the area.
The FDA director also stated during the meeting that consumer health is a top priority for the organization.
As a result, the FDA will keep working with the Environmental Protection Agency and the sanitation departments of the various assemblies to step up their efforts to ensure that all producers in the industry in the region use the proper equipment and maintain good hygiene at their various production sites.
Conclusion
Stay tuned for more interesting news updates.