Validation of the shelf life of NAFDAC-certified sachet-packed drinking water brands vended in Nigeria.

This study was performed to validate the shelf life of commercial sachet-packed drinking water produced in the Benin City metropolis, Edo State, Nigeria. Seven brands of sachet-packed water that were freshly produced by manufacturers were collected from respective factories and subjected to standard physicochemical and microbial tests. The colour of all water brands (0·0-5·6 HU) was within the limits recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) (≤15 HU) while the temperature (26·9-28·4°C) was above the limits recommended by WHO (≤25·0°C). The pH reported in brands 1 and 6 at week 8 of storage was below WHO recommended limits (6·5-9·5). At week 8 of storage, brands 1 and 6 had HPC (3·97-4·70 log10 CFU per ml) that were above WHO/National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) recommended limits (≤2 log10 CFU per ml) while TCC (<1 MPN 100 ml-1 ) in all brands were within recommended limits (≤10 MPN 100 ml-1 ). No thermo-tolerant Coliforms and Cryptosporidium were present in all brands; though, Streptococcus faecalis was detected in brand 6. Based on WHO/NAFDAC specifications for the examined parameters, brands 1 and 6 were inferred to not comply with the recommended shelf life of 2 months (approximately 8 weeks). Hence, there is a need for strict compliance to NAFDAC-specified Good Manufacturing Practice by these processing factories to prevent probable adverse health effects.