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WESTMINSTER CITY Council is warning Muslims to be on the lookout for a rogue mineral water which unscrupulous sellers claim is from a sacred well in Mecca after seizing a consignment from an Islamic bookstore at the start of the holy month of Ramadan.
Environmental health officers swooped on the bookshop in Westbourne Grove, west London, following an anonymous tip-off that fraudulent Zam Zam water, which can contain worryingly high levels of nitrates and arsenic, was being offered for sale.
Levels of arsenic in the rogue water have been found to almost three times the permitted level, which could contribute to increasing people's risk of cancer.?? The seizure comes in the wake of an operation carried out on Monday which saw environmental health officers visiting up to 50 premises to check the water was not on sale.
Saudi authorities expressly forbid the export of genuine holy Zam Zam water, so any being offered for sale in the UK will be from unauthorised sources and potentially harmful.
The warning over high levels of arsenic and nitrates does not cover genuine Zam Zam, which is sourced from the Well of Zam Zam, located within the Masjid al Haram in Mecca, and which returning Pilgrims are allowed to bring into the UK for personal consumption.
Cllr Audrey Lewis, Cabinet Member for Community Protection, said: "It is both immoral and unacceptable to put people's health at risk in this way, particularly during Ramadan, and we are calling on the community to help us stamp out such exploitation.
We're extremely concerned that Muslims may be exploited during the holy month of Ramadan as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia forbids the commercial export of genuine Zam Zam, so we have no idea of the true source of the water which ends up on the streets of the UK.
But what we can say with certainty is that any bottles of Zam Zam on sale in the UK could be unsafe and would urge people not to be tempted to drink them, and report any sightings to the authorities.
Fake water comes in all shapes and sizes, and can come in plastic bottles, yoghurt cartons and brown urns. This latest seizure will be sent to the Public Analyst for testing to check the safety of the contents.
For further information or photographs please call Charles Begley at Westminster City Council's Communications' Department on 020 7641 3041.
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