LAHORE: The Punjab Food Authority (PFA) has stopped production of 24 companies after the lab test reports have declared their mineral water samples as unfit.

According to the authority`s director (operations) Rafia Haider, the PFA teams took samples of 47 companies in Lahore and other big cities of the province and got them tested by public and private sector labs. `The mineral water samples of 24 of the 47 companies have been found unfit for human consumption,` Ms Rafia said in a statement here on Friday.

She said of the 24 samples` tests six lacked the required ingredients or salts, 15 contained germs/ bacteria and three lacked minerals and contained germs.

`Following the test reports, we have stopped the production of thesecompanies and their samples will be taken again and tested under different procedures. And if their samples are declared fit, we will restore their production,` she said.

She said the companies the tests of which were declared unfit included Quresh Nawab Water World, Farmajin Water, New Life, Heaven Drinking Water, Melor Drinking Water, Freshly Premium Water, H2O Water, Fow Drinking Water, Blue-in Water, Manahil Water, Musfa Water, Ahsan Water, Taj Fazal Water, Madina Water, Lajpal Water, Fazle-Azam Water, Usama Water, Nawaz Water and Abbas Water.

Meanwhile, the PFA teams on Friday seized a huge quantity of dead chicken being transported to different parts of the city for sale.

The teams, according to a spokesman, stopped a vehicle near Emporium Mall (Johar Town) and found 157 dead chicken.

The team got the chicken discarded besides arresting the vehicle driver. A case has been registered against the driver and the poultry farm owner.