Kebs summons water bottlers over rise of counterfeit products

The Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) has summoned representatives of water bottling companies for a crisis meeting Wednesday to discuss the rise of counterfeit products which are posing health risks to consumers.

“Kebs has organised a meeting with all water bottling firms in the country following an upsurge of companies that do not follow laid out safety standards. According to records at Kebs, there are 600 registered firms. During the meeting, Kebs is expected to give a directive on water bottling standards,” the State agency said in a letter signed by CEO Charles Ongwae.

The Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) supports Kebs’ move to rein in rogue businessmen. KAM said its members were losing billions of shillings to illicit water bottlers.

“(Counterfeit) bottled water is a big concern for us, we do support the move by Kebs to rein in anyone taking part in the illicit trade. It has a direct impact on genuine manufactures who are paying tax and complying with the law,” said KAM chief executive Phyllis Wakiaga in an interview.

Ms Wakiaga said that poor enforcement of laws had allowed the counterfeit trade to thrive resulting in loss of revenue by the government and bottlers.

“We need to have very robust enforcement to be able to nab any of those goods in the market,” she said. The Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek) however says Kebs was not doing enough to protect consumers against counterfeit bottled water products.

“Kebs is not doing enough on enforcement of water standards. Bottled water is a free-for-all business. It’s poorly regulated. Major brands are also deceptive on content labelling. It’s time Kebs required all water bottlers to use clear bottles,” said Cofek secretary-general Stephen Mutoro.

The Kenyan water business has in recent months witnessed exponential growth. However, there have been complaints of substandard water products which put to risk the health of consumers.

Consumer demand for safe drinking water has spurred the rise of bottled water firms.

A recent World Bank/IFC study detailing the bottled water market in Kenya estimated sales at Sh12 billion per year. According to the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) over 60 per cent of water and juices in the market are counterfeit.

KRA Commissioner-General John Njiraini said last month that the illegal trade was denying the country billions of shillings in revenue.

“The water and juices sector is one of the fastest growing industries in the country, but statistics indicate that over 60 per cent of the water and juices are illicit,” he said.