The Ministry of Health of Ukraine has published a draft order establishing criteria for classifying drinking water as “natural mineral water.” The proposal defines geological, hydrogeological, physicochemical, microbiological, and clinical requirements applicable to natural mineral waters in line with the Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 542 of 9 May 2025.
Under the proposed criteria, natural mineral water must:
1.Originate from an underground aquifer accessed through natural springs or boreholes;
2.Be microbiologically safe and protected from external contamination;
3.Possess natural characteristics distinguishing it from ordinary drinking water, including mineral and trace element composition;
4.Maintain stable composition, temperature, and essential characteristics within natural fluctuations.
Microbiological Standards
Natural mineral water must be free from:
1.Parasites and pathogenic microorganisms;
2.Escherichia coli and other coliform bacteria;
3.Enterococci;
4.Sulfite-reducing anaerobes (Clostridia);
5.Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
The proposal also establishes limits for viable bacterial colony counts both at the source and in packaged products.
The draft criteria also establish maximum permissible levels for naturally occurring constituents in natural mineral water that may pose a risk to human health. These include barium (1.0 mg/L), boron (1.5 mg/L), cadmium (0.003 mg/L), manganese (0.50 mg/L), arsenic (0.010 mg/L), copper (1.0 mg/L), nickel (0.020 mg/L), nitrates (50 mg/L), nitrites (0.1 mg/L), mercury (0.0010 mg/L), lead (0.010 mg/L), selenium (0.010 mg/L), antimony (0.0050 mg/L), fluorides (5.0 mg/L), chromium (0.050 mg/L), and cyanides (0.070 mg/L). The proposal specifies that these substances must be naturally present in the water and not result from contamination at the source.
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