The quality of bottled water has recently caused a major controversy in Tunisia, with some people claiming that the quality of this water is very poor.
This issue was addressed by Chahnaz Guizani, Director General of the Tunisian Office of Thermalism and Hydrotherapy at a press conference.
In an interview with AfricanManager, she confirmed that water bottled in Tunisia is subject to Tunisian specifications and stressed that water bottling plants are subject to regular health checks by the Ministry of Health structures.
Interview:
What are the stages involved in setting up a bottled water project in Tunisia?
The mission of the Tunisian Office of thermalism and Hydrotherapy is to implement government policy in the field of water health and the bottled water sector, in accordance with Law No. 58 of 1975, dated June 14, 1975, amended by Decree No. 52 of 2011, of June 6, 2011. The Agency is under the supervision of the Ministry of Health. The bottled water sector includes natural mineral water and bottled water intended for human consumption.
The activity of water bottling is subject to the requirements of the Specifications on the General Conditions for the Organization, Operation and Production of the Sector, which includes all the stages involved in setting up a water bottling unit and the documents required.
How are bottled water plants monitored and what is the role of the Office?
The National Food Safety Authority is responsible for monitoring bottled water products, and the bottling plants also have self-monitoring laboratories.
As far as the Office is concerned, it is responsible for setting up quality systems in the sector and, through its laboratory, it monitors the quality of the final product by subjecting it to microbiological and physico-chemical analyses to check the safety and purity of the water and the stability of its composition.
This year, 192,000 bottles of water that did not meet the specifications were destroyed. The agency is also responsible for approving product labels before they are introduced or updated.
In view of certain discussions about changing the physico-chemical composition of bottled water, is it possible to make such a change?
The Agency is responsible for monitoring the stability of the physico-chemical composition of bottled water, as stability is an essential requirement for the canning of mineral water. It is therefore advisable to consume bottled water with a different physico-chemical composition in order to benefit from all its components.
Has this sector evolved over the years?
Obviously, the sector has undergone significant quantitative and qualitative development, as reflected in the available statistics, since the number of water bottling units has increased from 5 in 1985 to 30 in 2023, with a total production capacity of 500,000 bottles per hour.
The sector has been able to meet the needs of the domestic market, which has experienced a qualitative leap, with total annual consumption rising from 290 million liters to 3 billion liters, and individual consumption rising from 7 liters to 244 liters over the same period.
The sector has also seen the commissioning of 14 new water bottling plants since 2010, helping to meet the growing demand for this product and creating more than 3,500 direct jobs, not counting the estimated 15,000 indirect jobs.
The sector will be further strengthened by the arrival of a new bottling plant that will be operational before the end of 2024.
What is the cost of bottled water in Tunisia?
Packaging represents 60% of the cost of bottled water in Tunisia. With this in mind, some factories have started to use ecological and recyclable packaging materials, such as ‘one-way glass bottles’, which will have a positive impact on the environment.
What are the future plans for the management of water resources in the bottled water sector?
The authority has taken a number of steps to develop a ‘Bottled Water Management Plan for Tunisia until 2050’, which aims to establish the structural and legal procedures and mechanisms needed for sustainable management.
