Stricter regulations imposed on spaza shops

• South Africa has introduced stricter regulations for spaza shops following nearly 900 cases of foodborne illnesses and over 20 deaths.
• Investigations revealed that banned pesticides, including Terbufos, have been linked to food contamination and deaths, particularly among children.
• Spaza shops must register with municipalities and comply with health standards within 21 days, or face closure.

With close to 900 cases of food-borne illnesses reported across the country since the beginning of September, government recently announced a means of regulation for spaza shops.

Since the beginning of September, there have been a total of 890 reported incidents of food-borne illnesses across all provinces. Most recently more than 20 people have died in the country, with several more cases reported over the past few months.

Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal have been the most affected, with Limpopo, Free State and Mpumalanga also recording dozens of incidents.

Closer to home, the City of Cape Town reports the investigation of two incidents in Khayelitsha with the discovery of foods past its sell-by date and the makeshift butchery in Mfuleni which sparked widespread interest.

On Friday 15 November, President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the nation following a decision by cabinet regarding spaza shops after a large majority of cases were linked to these shops across the country.

“The investigations that have taken place do not suggest any deliberate campaign to poison children in our country,” he said. “There is also no evidence that the problem is confined to spaza shops owned by foreign nationals only. These products are just as likely to be sold in shops owned by South Africans.”

The City confirms more than 1 000 applications have already been received.

While this problem is not confined to spaza shops and informal traders alone, the discovery of the link to these recent deaths has sparked the action.

This follows the discovery of harmful and sometimes banned pesticides linked to the deaths of some children. The spaza shops linked to the deaths of any children were already closed.

“We all have a duty – as the State, as a society, as parents and families – to protect those among us who are most vulnerable,” he said.

As a result, all spaza shops and other food handling facilities must be registered within the municipalities in which they operate within 21 days from the announcement, ending Friday 6 December.

“Any shop that is not registered within 21 days and does not meet all health standards and requirements will be closed,” said Ramaphosa. “The South African Police Service and other law enforcement agencies will be required to investigate, arrest and prosecute offenders. This will involve close cooperation with all registered manufacturers and suppliers.”

Social panic

In the days following the announcement, social media has seen widespread panic and disinformation, ranging from finding tablets in chips packets to claims of expired foods.

A local spaza shop owner, who asked not to be named for fear of further victimisation says they have no problem complying with the regulations.

“I have been threatened by a group of people to burn my shop down,” he says. “I have operated this superette for the last 15 years and we serve the community. We are also just trying to make a living.”

A Bangladeshi national, he says extortion and threats are common and just recently another shop owner had their store set alight for refusing to comply with extortionists. “They are using this problem. The community gets behind them because of this.”

When asked about the concerns regarding expired foods, he says: “We have no complaints so far. And if something comes back we will exchange it.”

The shop sells everything from dog food to fresh vegetables, eggs, detergents and more.

They do not stock any pest control substances, other than Rattex and Raid in its original packaging, he says.

However, the store does stock re-packaged items such as sugar, rice and half-loaves of bread.

“We serve a poor community. They can’t afford a whole loaf of bread, so we need to offer them something they can afford.”

Pesticide poisoning

The National Institute for Communicable Diseases was requested to conduct scientific tests and has established that the deaths of the six children in Naledi, Soweto can be directly attributed to a highly hazardous chemical used as a pesticide known as Terbufos.

Terbufos can have serious health effects, even at low levels of exposure.

Terbufos is an organophosphate chemical that is registered in South Africa for agricultural use. It is not allowed to be sold for general household use.

However, Terbufos is being informally sold as a so-called “street pesticide” for domestic use in townships and informal settlements to control rats.

Samples were taken from 84 spaza shops in the Naledi area. Of these, three had evidence of Terbufos.

“After stringent testing, a chip packet found on one of the children who had died had traces of Terbufos on both the inside and the outside of the packet,” says Ramaphosa.

“As part of the investigation into the Naledi deaths, inspectors confiscated a number of illegal pesticides from spaza shops. They found instances where food was being stored alongside pesticides and detergents.”

It was also found that these spaza shops lacked proper safe food storage, hand and dishwashing facilities, increasing the likelihood of food contamination.

In many townships another chemical, Aldicarb, and an organophosphate known as Galephirimi are commonly sold by street vendors and hawkers to control rat infestations. Aldicarb has been banned for use in South Africa since 2016. Last year, three children in Ekurhuleni and three children in Soweto died after exposure to Aldicarb, says Ramaphosa.

Compliance

While campaigns – including inspections in schools and door-to-door – will form part of an integrated approach, multidisciplinary inspection teams will undertake compliance inspections of food handling facilities, manufacturers, distributors, wholesaler and retailers. This will include spaza shops and general dealers.

“Non-compliant businesses and shops linked to any poisoning incidents or found to unlawfully stock hazardous chemicals will be shut down,” says Ramaphosa.

Inspections of manufacturers and retailers will also be conducted.

By the start of the new school year, a review and update of the guidelines for schools on the management of suppliers of foodstuffs to public schools will be undertaken.

Food safety guidelines

“The City would like to caution against the persistent references to ‘expired’ food. It is important to note that there is no provision for ‘expired food’ in the current South African Labelling Regulations,” says Mayco member for community services and health, Patricia van der Ross.

“The regulations do however dictate that all foodstuff have a clearly indicated date marking on the label.”

Generally, these are:

• ‘Best Before’, which generally applies to foods that do not require refrigeration (canned goods, rice, pasta, cereal, biscuits etc.).
• ‘Sell By’, which is the date by which it should leave the store, but will still be safe for a reasonable period of time after.
• ‘Use By’, which is the most critical, and generally applies to meat, dairy or any other product that requires refrigeration.

“Also important is that, with regard to shelf stable goods, i.e. items that do not require refrigeration, food items could still be safe to use, but the nutritional value may diminish after the sell-by date. Perishables and cold-chain goods should not be sold past the use-by dates.”

• Anyone who sees fake foodstuffs and expired foodstuffs being sold in our communities, should report them to the National Consumer Commission on 012 065 1940.