Raw water: Is it bullshit?

There is a new fad spreading rapidly in the US.  "Raw water" is the latest craze for health fanatics keen to spend serious money.

What is raw water?  Its proponents claim it is water as nature intended it - unfiltered and untreated, containing minerals from the water source and no chlorine.  One raw water company claims that "all other bottled, filtered, tap, and even spring waters are sterilised with ozone gas, irradiated with UV light, and passed through a submicron filter" and that "blasting water with ozone changes its molecular structure".  Clearly, there is some truth in this statement, but also a lot of nonsense.

Some water sources are indeed safe to consume untreated; others may appear to be so, but are not safe.  In August 2016, over 1000 residents of Havelock North in New Zealand became ill after consuming drinking water from two bores operated by the local council.  Investigations showed that the affected residents had been infected by Campylobacter.  This was not the first time that the bore heads had been found to be contaminated.   The outcome of an extensive investigation was that the water in the bore heads was contaminated with water from an adjoining farm pond on land that had been inundated by heavy rains.  The aquifer was not contained and when the pumps were turned on, water from the pond, probably contaminated with sheep faeces, was drawn into the town supply.  Anecdotal evidence says that the level in the pond dropped when the pumps were turned on.  An immediate response was to chlorinate all water supplied in the area, which annoyed some residents, and the two affected bores were closed.  Water was drawn from other bores in the nearby Hastings area and  the supply has been chlorinated.

I am constantly surprised by people who want to turn back the clock to a time when food and water borne diseases were common, before modern scientific and technological advances made our lives much safer.  Campaigning to ban chlorination of town water is one of those issues.  Consumption of raw milk is another one of those desires that can lead to illness.

However, I am also reminded constantly that many rural areas are not serviced by mains water and wastes are treated on site in septic tanks, then discharged to the land.  Our house on our own lifestyle farm collects water from the roof and stores it in 36,000L tanks.  There is no filtration, chemical or UV treatment.  We, like many other rural dwellers, are thereby deliberately exposing ourselves to risk, though there is no alternative other than boiling water or buying bottled water for drinking.  The only thing I can say is that since moving to the farm over 30 years ago, we have never suffered from gastrointestinal illness.

Where does this leave us?  Treated tap water is probably the safest water supply.  Experience shows that rural tank water is usually safe, though it is not sterile; provided that the tanks are protected from contamination by animals or from septic tanks, there is little to fear from drinking it.  The perceived benefits of bottled raw water may be illusory, and the marketing hype criticising filtration and ultraviolet treatment of spring waters is just plain misleading.  Those getting the most benefit from bottled raw water are the suppliers.

Brexit, Trump and food safety fears

The decision by Britain to leave the EU would not immediately spring to mind as a cause for concern over food safety.  Neither would the election of Donald Trump as President of the USA.

However, decisions made in haste or with little forethought can often have unexpected consequences.

It now appears that a trade agreement between the US and UK might result in food products banned in the EU being imported into the UK.  This might include beef from cattle implanted with growth hormones, chlorine-washed chicken, and unlabelled genetically modified (GM) foods.

This has resulted in a furore on FaceBook, though the concern about chlorine-washed chicken is a little surprising.  Chlorine rinses are used extensively in the food industry to reduce surface contamination on vegetables, during chicken processing and for sanitation of equipment during food processing.

Of course, chlorine is also used in water treatment for decontamination of potable water supplies where UV treatment is not used, perhaps for cost cosiderations.

Over the years, a lot of work has been done on the effects of chlorine in foods.  At the levels used for practical decontamination, there is no risk to human health, though some chemical changes are inevitable. 

If you are keen to follow up on this, The Institute for Environmental and Scientific Research Limited, (ESR) in New Zealand produced a report in 2008 for the New Zealand Food Safety Authority:  Client Report FW0883 CHLORINATED COMPOUNDS FORMED DURING CHLORINE WASH OF CHICKEN MEAT.

It is available on-line at:  http://www.foodsafety.govt.nz/elibrary/industry/chlorinated-compounds-formed-research-projects/FW0883_Chlorinated_compounds_in_chicken_meat.pdf

The report stated that "In conclusion, no safety issues were identified due to the use of chlorine dioxide and ASC for poultry carcass disinfection. Chlorination reactions appear to be insignificant for these compounds and oxidation reactions do not appear to result in significant alteration of the fatty acid and amino acid composition of poultry carcasses".   Further, the authors stated " ...we consider that there is insufficient evidence to justify further investigation of the risks to human health from the use of these disinfection chemicals in poultry processing".