Recalled Drinking Water Still Being Sold Online

A drinking water brand recalled in 2021, prompting a $3 billion court ruling, is still being sold online.

Five children and three adults sued Real Water, a Nevada-based water company, alleging that their alkaline water contained a toxic chemical known as hydrazine that ultimately led to liver damage for all plaintiffs. The children's ages range from 7 months to 5 years old and according to the plaintiffs' lead attorney, Will Kemp, had to be flown to a children's hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah, in the fall of 2020 for potential liver transplants that never came to fruition, Newsweek previously reported.

In 2021, Real Water, Inc. of Mesa, Arizona, and Henderson, Nevada, issued a voluntary recall of all water in its Real Water brand after revealing that the water was linked to a non-viral hepatitis diagnosis reported in the Las Vegas area in November 2020.

More From Newsweek Vault: What Is a Health Savings Account?

Symptoms of non-viral hepatitis, which causes sudden liver inflammation, include fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dark urine, clay or gray-colored bowel movements, joint pain, yellow eyes and jaundice, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recall notice.

More From Newsweek Vault: Compare the Top Health Savings Account (HSA) Providers

The company ceased operations following the recall until it could comply with FDA standards. As of June of this year, it hadn't resumed operations.

"According to the terms of the consent decree of permanent injunction, Real Water Inc. agreed to cease operations until they can comply with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) and other requirements listed in a consent decree," a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) spokesperson told Newsweek. "As of today, June 20, 2024, Real Water Inc. is not currently in operation."

However, South Carolina-based Caliber Grocers was still selling the water—available in 16.9 ounces, 33.8 ounces, 1.5 liters and 1 gallon, as well as in coconut water varieties—on its website. Newsweek was successfully able to order the water and have it delivered, despite the water company allegedly not being in operation.

Caliber Grocers describes itself as a "supplier of organic and natural products with distribution centers in the US and Canada." Newsweek reached out to the grocer by email and by phone for comment.

When a user selects the Real Water product on Caliber Grocers' website, the description reads: "Other ionized waters like those produced with expensive machines will lose their negative ionization benefits within just two days. In contrast, Real Water is stable! E2 Technology allows Real Water to maintain its negative ORP for six to nine months when bottled. To our knowledge, there is no other bottled water on the market today that can duplicate this."

The 2021 recall resulted from a Southern Nevada Health District and FDA investigation following the reported cases of non-viral hepatitis.

In the 2021 recall notice, the FDA suggested that any customers possessing the water should discard it immediately and not drink it.