Before you take a sip of your next bottled water, take a good look at the label. Niagara Bottling company, based in Pennsylvania, issued a voluntary recall of several of its bottled water brands due to possible E. coli contamination, according to the company’s official statement.
The contamination is linked to one of the springs Niagara bottles water from. A warning was issued by the Pennsylvania departments of Agriculture, Environmental Protection, and Health, stating that spring water bottled between June 10 and June 18 at Niagra’s Hamburg, PA and Allentown, PA facilities should not be consumed.
In a statement on their website Niagara writes:
Niagara was notified that the source was potentially compromised. There have been no reports of any illness or injury related to the above mentioned products to date and finished product testing detected no contaminants or issues of any kind. This voluntary withdrawal is being implemented in cooperation with State and Federal Agencies.
The brands bottled between these two facilities are:
Acadia
Acme
Big Y
Best Yet
7-11
Niagara
Nature’s Place
Pricerite
Superchill
Morning Fresh
Shaws
Shoprite
Western Beef Blue
Wegman’s
Niagara states that the only affected products have codes that begin with the letter F (for Hamburg) or A (for Allentown). The first digit after the letter indicates the number of the production line. The next two numbers indicate the day, then the month in letters, the year, and then the time, based on a 24-hour clock.
Niagara is currently not using water from the spring that tested positive for E. Coli and as of this report, Niagra has not received any reports of illness connected to the recall.
In a document consumers can download, Niagara explains, “E. coli are bacteria whose presence indicates that the water may be contaminated with human or animal wastes. Microbes in these wastes can cause diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches, or other symptoms. They may pose a special health risk for infants, young children, some of the elderly and people with severely compromised immune systems.
Niagara advises consumers to boil their water first for one minute, or use other bottled water. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water.
For more information on this recall, contact Niagara Bottling, LLC Consumer Services at (877)487-7873.
