Qualitative Assessment of Sachet and Bottled Water Marketed in Bauchi Metropolis, Bauchi-State, Nigeria

Abstract

Quality water is an essential commodity needed for the survival of eco-system and good health. This research present the result of quality assessment of bottled and sachet water sold in Bauchi metropolis. Twenty-three (23) water brands consisting of fifteen (15) sachet water and eight (8) bottled water were collected, physically examined and assessed for their physiochemical and microbiological parameters using standard analytical procedures to ascertain the level of compliance with World Health Organization (WHO) and Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON) specification for drinking water. An expression was developed that established the relationship between TDS and EC having a multiplying factor of 0.5 compared to 0.67 of the WHO, 2007 as illustrated in figure 3.1 and figure 3.2. The results from the physical examinations reveals that none of the water brands indicated the mineral composition and batch number, while 20 % of the water brands had no manufacturing and expiry date. The study revealed that the physical and chemical characteristics of the water brands do not wholly meet the recommended standards while the microbiological evaluation revealed that only 26.67% and 75.00% of the sachet and bottled water respectively had total bacteria coli form within the recommended standards. The result shows that 73.30 % and 25.00 % of Sachet and bottled water considered in this study are not fit for Human consumption at the time of the studies.

Keywords: Bottled water, Chemical analysis, Microbiological analysis, Physical analysis, Sachet water.