Secondhand plastic bottles dangerous
With the increase of the price of plastic bottles two or three fold since early 1998, several brands of small-pack bottled water in Greater Jakarta are using used bottles. In accordance with the Ministry of Industry and Trade's regulation No.167/MPP/KEP/5/97, of May 28, 1997, plastic drinking-water bottles (BDW) are prohibited to be reused, except for 5 gallon PC (polycarbonate) bottles. The reason for this is because small-pack plastic bottles made of poly ethylene therephtalate (PET) cannot be sanitized and disinfected effectively with hot water because the bottles will then be deformed. Cleaning the bottles alone is by no means enough because bacteria, including pathogenic bacteria, will not be killed or removed.
It is, therefore, obvious that bottled water in used plastic bottles is almost all, if not all, contaminated with bacteria, which is evident from laboratory analysis. This kind of water contains more than one million of common bacteria per ml. Worst still, they contain also E.coli, a sort of bacteria that is commonly found in human feces. The presence of this bacteria in water is indicative of contamination with feces. This is a serious violation of the standard for bottled water i.e. SNI-01- 3553-1996.
It is no wonder the water is so heavily contaminated because the empty used bottles are collected by scavengers from rivers, waste or trash containers and trash heaps, and are sold or delivered to non-bona fide bottlers who used them for their products. It has happened that the Salmonella bacteria, the cause of typhoid fever, was found in a bottled water product bearing one of those inferior brands. Someone who consumes this water is at great risk of getting sick.
Needless to say that using secondhand PET bottles for the production of bottled water is absolutely irresponsible because it is against the law and worst of all, it will expose the consumers to microbiological and chemical risks which may be hazardous to human health.
The irresponsible companies that produce bottled water using secondhand bottles instead of brand new bottles are only concerned with a big and easy profit, without bothering at all about the safety of the products and consumers. As an illustration: a new 600 ml PET bottle costs Rp 400, while secondhand bottles are available for Rp 10 to Rp 20 a piece. So, they can sell bottled water at a lower price and make enormous profits.
This ill practice of using secondhand bottles not only harms the consumers but also the bottled-water industry as a whole. If somebody gets sick from drinking such inferior bottled water, the whole industry will suffer because the only thing that people know is that somebody fell sick after drinking bottled water. Most consumers do not pay attention to what kind of brand they buy, let alone the quality.
We urge consumers to carefully look at the condition of the bottle. Do not buy it if the bottle is very dirty, not clear, dull and suspected of being a secondhand bottle. Very often these products are clandestine and, therefore, they do not have a SNI and MD (Depkes Registration number) on their label.
These unfair and dishonest practices are unlawful and action should be taken against them because they constitute a danger to the consumers. To consumers, we would like to suggest once again that they be cautious and careful when purchasing bottled water products. Don't choose a brand only because it is cheap. Your health may be at stake.
DR. RAYMOND CHASPURI
Head Control Division
Indonesian Bottled Water Association
Jakarta