BEIRUT: Health Minister Wael Abu Faour asked authorities Monday to shut down a chicken farm temporarily for health violations and referred a report citing contaminated dairy products at a Bekaa Valley factory to the judiciary. Abu Faour sent a letter to Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk, asking the ministry to shut down the Tanmiah factory for two weeks until the company carried out measures needed to meet the required standards.
The request came after a Health Ministry unit inspected the company in the Bekaa Valley last week and reported that the factory violated hygiene and health standards.
The unit relayed a verbal warning to the firm, which failed to comply, according to Abu Faour’s statement.
Abu Faour has said the factory, which produces meat and chicken items and is famous for its cold cuts, had been purposely advancing production dates printed on its products by three months, deceiving consumers into thinking they are fresh.
The minister also referred to State Prosecutor Samir Hamoud the results of an inspection into Taanayel Center, a dairy factory in the Bekaa.
The report indicated that the factory contained contaminated and expired cheese, yogurt and yeast.
Abu Faour asked that the report be used by the prosecutor to follow up on the case and launch a probe to prevent future breaches.
Meanwhile, during a visit to Dbayyeh’s water station, Energy and Water Minister Arthur Nazarian reassured residents of Beirut, its suburbs and Mount Lebanon that potable water met health specifications.
He said the same applied to potable water sold by licensed firms.
“We at the ministry are not responsible for the unlicensed companies distributing water,” he said. “Today, we have inspected the work of laboratories in Dbayyeh’s [water] station, which is equipped with the latest technology to examine water and ensure it isn’t contaminated.”
His visit came in light of media reports that potable water channeled to Beirut’s households was polluted, and after Abu Faour revealed in mid-November that drinking water sold by unlicensed water companies contained traces of sewage.
During his tour, Nazarian highlighted the importance of establishing water dams like the Bisri, Janna and Qismani to collect water for storage.
“As there is a need for factories in the energy sector to reserve power, there’s a need for dams to save rainwater,” he said.
After touring the water stations in Beirut and Mount Lebanon, Nazarian checked the water-treatment plants and reservoirs in Dbayyeh, Dayshounieh and Tallet al-Khayat.
“The [water authority] is establishing new reservoirs to gather water and is constantly examining old and new wells for quality control,” he said.
Although toward the end of last summer samples taken from wells contained high levels of salt due to the dry weather, Nazarian said the precipitation and snowfall expected this winter would dilute sodium levels.
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