North Macedonia finds bacteria in a water sample from Kosovo

The Food and Veterinary Agency of North Macedonia announced on Tuesday that it is inspecting all shipments of imported spring water from Kosovo, after laboratory tests conducted on a water sample revealed the presence of coliform bacteria.

According to this agency, samples will be taken at import inspection points and that shipments will not be released into circulation until a result is received confirming the safety of the products.

"Due to the positive laboratory finding of coliform bacteria in mineral spring water originating from the Republic of Kosovo, in violation of the provisions of the Regulation on special safety requirements for natural mineral water, spring water and other packaged water ("Official Gazette of the Republic of Macedonia" no. 184/20218), the import of all shipments of mineral spring water originating from this country has been made under increased supervision," the Food and Veterinary Agency of North Macedonia announced.

Macedonian media have reported that the water sample in which the bacteria was found belongs to the company "Rugova". The company said in a statement that its products are regularly certified by the National Institute of Public Health (NIPH) and that the products have also successfully passed the tests at the Kosovo Food and Veterinary Agency (KFVA).

Regarding the suspected sample, the company said that after the second analysis, the water was found to be clean and drinkable.

"On February 12, during an analysis carried out on the export of a quantity of water in 1.5l plastic bottles to North Macedonia, it was found that the quality of the water did not pass the tests. Regarding the analyzed sample, we would like to clarify that: The sample in question was part of the standard border control procedure before the product was placed on the market. According to the legislation in force, after an initial analysis, we requested that the same sample be tested again by the relevant Macedonian authorities. The results of the second analysis confirmed that the water is clean, drinkable and without any quality problems," the company "Rugova" said.

Regarding the issue, KOHA has contacted the Food and Veterinary Agency in Kosovo and this institution has said that they are awaiting official information from authorities in North Macedonia.

The coliform bacteria test is a standard used to assess the quality of drinking water. 

Coliform bacteria are organisms found in the environment and in the feces of all warm-blooded animals and humans. These bacteria cannot cause disease. However, their presence in drinking water indicates that disease-causing organisms (pathogens) may be present in the water system, according to a description from the Washington State Department of Health.

According to him, if coliform bacteria are found in a water sample, water system operators work to find the source of the contamination.