Lebanese Industry Minister: Tannourine Water was 'unfairly punished'

Lebanese Industry Minister Joe Issa Khoury said that Tannourine Water was “unjustly penalized and wrongfully accused,” stressing the need to reform how Lebanon monitors food safety and public health. 

He called for greater coordination among ministries to ensure effective and unified oversight, noting that he is following up on the matter with Minister Rakan Nassereddine.

Khoury underscored the government’s role in reassuring foreign markets that Lebanese products remain unaffected by what he described as harmful rumors that must be punished under the law.

“The issue of Tannourine Water has been blown out of proportion,” he said. “At the Ministry of Industry, we handled it scientifically and technically. We tasked the Industrial Research Institute with testing more than thirty samples, all of which met safety and quality standards.”

Reiterating that “Tannourine has been wronged,” Khoury said the situation has now been resolved. He criticized what he called “vicious attacks” on reputable companies, warning that defamation, unfair competition, or blackmail will not go unpunished.