Perrier Resumes Bottling Mineral Water

Perrier resumed bottling mineral water today, and a company spokesman said human error probably caused the benzene contamination that forced the recall of about 72 million bottles in Canada and the United States.

“All tests at the end of the production line have been negative,” spokesman Jean-Claude Lemaignen said after bottling returned to normal.

Company officials believe that only 13 bottles were contaminated with the poisonous chemical, he said. But the company has said all recalled bottles will be destroyed.

Exports of the product to the United States and Canada will resume more rapidly than planned, in the next week or two, Lemaignen said. Earlier, the company had said its product might be off the market for months.

Source Perrier SA halted production of its mineral water over the weekend and withdrew bottles from North American store shelves after the contamination was discovered. (Story, A3.)

French newspaper reports estimated that the contamination problem will cost the company $40 million in lost revenues.

Trading in shares of the company on the French stock exchange was suspended several times today before resuming just after midday with prices down $41 a share from Friday’s close.

Perrier Chairman Frederik Zimmer said human error was to blame for the entry of the benzene into the bottling process at the plant in Vergeze in southern France.

He said an employee used a product containing benzene to clean some grease from one bottling line, whose production was destined only for North America.

Benzene is a clear, flammable poison used as a solvent for fats and in making lacquers, varnishes and dyes. At high doses, it has been linked to cancer in animals.