Statutory Instrument 1994 No. 743

The Drinking Water in Containers Regulations 1994

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© Crown Copyright 1994

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1994 No. 743

FOOD

The Drinking Water in Containers Regulations 1994

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the Secretary of State for Health, the Secretary of State for Wales, acting jointly, in relation to England and Wales, and the Secretary of State for Scotland in relation to Scotland, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by sections 6(4), 17(1), 26(1) and (3) and 48(1) of the Food Safety Act 1990^[1], and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, hereby make the following Regulations, after consultation in accordance with section 48(4) of the said Act with such organisations as appear to them to be representative of interests likely to be substantially affected by the Regulations:

Title and commencement
    1.    These Regulations may be cited as the Drinking Water in Containers Regulations 1994 and shall come into force on 1st April 1994.

Interpretation
    2.—(1)  In these Regulations, except where the context otherwise requires—
"the Act" means the Food Safety Act 1990;
"bottle", the noun, means a closed container of any kind in which water is sold for human consumption, and "bottle", the verb, and cognate expressions, shall be construed accordingly;
"drinking water" means water intended for sale for human consumption in any bottle;
"parameter" means a property, element, organism or substance listed in the second column of the Tables in Part II of the Schedule to these Regulations;
"pesticides and related products" means any fungicide, herbicide or insecticide and polychlorinated biphenyls and terphenyls;
"prsecribed concentration or value", in relation to any parameter, means the maximum concentration or value specified in relation to that parameter in the Tables in Part II of the Schedule to these Regulations as measured by reference to the unit of measurement so specifed;
"sell" includes possess for sale, or offer or expose or advertise for sale, and "sale" shall be construed accordingly.

Exemptions
    3.    These Regulations shall not apply to any drinking water which—
 (a) is recognised as a natural mineral water under the Natural Mineral Waters Regulations 1985^[2]; or
 (b) is a medicinal product within the meaning of the Medicines Act 1968^[3] in respect of which a product licence within the meaning of that Act is dor time being in force.

Bottling or sale of drinking water
    4.—(1)  No person shall bottle or sell any drinking water unless it satisfies the requirements of the Schedule to these Regulations.

    (2)  The concentrations or values of the parameters listed in the Tables in Part II of the Schedule shall be read in conjunction with the notes thereto.

    (3)  The methods of analysis to be used for the purposes of these Regulations shall accord with the requirements of Article 12(5) of Council Directive 80/778/EEC relating to the quality of water intended for human consumption^[4].

    (4)  If any person contravenes paragraph (1) of this regulation he shall be guilty of an offence.

Defence in relation to exports
    5.    In any proceedings for an offence under regulation 4 of these Regulations it shall be a defence for the person charged to prove that the drinking water, in respect of which the offence is alleged to have been committed, was intended for export and complied with the importing country's domestic legislation relevant to the alleged offence.

Penalties
    6.    A peson guilty of an offence under these Regulations shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

Enforcemetn
    7.    Each food authority shall enforce and execute these Regulations within its area.

Application of various provisions of the Food Safety Act 1990
    8.—(1)  The following provisions of the Act shall apply for the purposes of these Regulations as they apply for the purposes of section 8, 14 or 15 of the Act and, unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in them to the Act shall be construed for the purposes of these Regulations as a reference to these Regulations—
 (a) section 2 (extended meaning of "sale", etc.);
 (b) section 3 (presumptions that food is intended for human consumption);
 (c) section 20 (offences due to fault of another person);
 (d) section 21 (defence of due diligence);
 (e) section 30(8) (which relates to documentary evidence);
 (f ) section 33 (obstruction etc. of officers);
 (g) section 36 (offences by bodies corporate);
 (h) section 44 (protection of officers acting in good faith).

    (2)  Section 8(3) (which makes presumptions in the case of batches, etc. of food) of the Act shall apply to drinking water which it is an offence to bottle or sell under these Regulations as it applies to food which fails to comply with food safety requirements.

    (3)  Section 9 (inspection and seizure of suspect food) of the Act shall apply to drinking water which it is an offence to bottle or sell under these Regulations as it applies to food which fails to comply with food safety requirements.

In witness whereof the Official Seal of the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food is hereunto affixed on
28th February 1994. (ls)

Gillian Shephard

Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Health

Cumberlege

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health

1st March 1994

John Redwood

Secretary of State for Wales

11th March 1994

Hector Monro

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Scottish Office

2nd March 1994

[1] 1990 c. 16; "the Ministers" is defined in section 4(1) of the Act. back

[2] S.I. 1985/71; to which there are amendments not relevant to these Regulations. back

[3] 1968 c. 67; section 130 which contains the definition of "medicinal product" was amended by the Animal Health and Welfare Act 1984 (c. 40), sections 13(2), 16, Schedule 1, paragraph 3(7) to (10), and Schedule 2. back

[4] OJ No. L 229, 30.8.80, p. 11. back

Explanatory Note