The Australian Beverages Council has refuted claims that tiny plastic particles are seeping into bottled water during the packaging process.
The State University of New York conducted an analysis involving 259 bottles of water from 11 brands across nine countries, and only 17 were found to be free of plastic.
The study found that, on average, each litre sold contained 325 pieces of microplastic, including polypropylene, nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate.
The Australasian Bottled Water Institute (ABWI), a division of the Australian Beverages Council, has stated that the ABWI Model Code, to which all its members subscribe, requires bottled and packaged water to be of the highest quality.
"To this end, members are audited annually to ensure these high standards are maintained," the spokesperson said.
"The findings of the research do not relate to Australian products.
"Under ABWI’s Model Code, water products derived from a source other than a public water supply must be rigorously tested by a professionally qualified hydrogeologist.
"This testing addresses strict conditions related to chemical, physical, microbiological and radiological characteristics of the source."
In 2017, Food Standards Australia and New Zealand, concluded a three-year project looking at chemicals migrating from packaging into food and drink.
The findings from that project determined the risk to public health and safety resulting from the chemicals migrating from packaging to food and drink is low.
Research on microplastics is still in the early stages, with further science emerging.
