Starbucks Hong Kong Used 'Toilet Water' To Brew Coffee

Starbucks Hong Kong is seriously accused of using bathroom water to brew coffee. Photos have been published that showed a man retrieving water from a spout in a men's bathroom a few feet away from a urinal and then using a container on a cart to transport it to the coffee shop.

Hong Kong-based tabloid Apple Daily, first published images of the questionable practice of Starbucks and in their report they stated that Starbucks staff fetch water from the public restroom in the building's parking garage several times every day and use it to brew coffee.

Starbucks spokeswoman Wendy Pang confirmed that water used to brew coffee at Starbucks' Bank of China Tower location was taken from a dedicated tap in a restroom and put through a filtration system in order to meet standards established by local authorities and the World Health Organization. she also stated that there is no direct water supply to that particular store, that’s why they need to obtain the drinking water from the nearest source in the building. However, she also added, the branch is now using distilled water.

A filtration system may remove bacteria, but could miss viruses, which tend to be smaller in size.

So, next time be careful before you have your coffee at starbucks.