Update
GEORGE NEWS - After a slight extension, the deadline for spaza shop owners to register their businesses or face closure, ends today, Tuesday 17 December, at 17:00.
The 21-day deadline is part of efforts to combat a surge of foodborne illnesses and was announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa last month after several children died after allegedly consuming food from spaza shops.
Ramaphosa made it clear that any vendor failing to register by the end of the day will be shut down.
According to George Municipality, 216 applications have been received and 20 temporary licences were issued for spaza shops and two for informal traders in the area.
In the meantime, the Environmental Health Practitioners (EHPs) of the Garden Route District Municipality (GRDM) have concluded their investigation into the reported illness of schoolchildren on 18 November in Mossel Bay.
The GRDM previously said that the children were reported to have fallen ill after consuming chips purchased from local spaza shops and vendors near their school.
The mandate of GRDM is to send similar batches of chip packets for testing to the National Health Laboratory Service – Forensic Chemistry Laboratory, to screen for potential contamination. Whereas the mandate of the South African Police Service is to send the actual foreign objects found in the food packaging for testing.
“Testing a specific batch of a product is crucial for pinpointing contamination or irregularities linked to a particular production or handling period. This process ensures traceability and prevents inaccurate generalizations about a product’s safety,” said GRDM Mayor Andrew Stroebel.
“According to the laboratory test results, the toxicology analysis confirmed that no traces of toxic chemicals were present in any of the batches of chips.”
“The EHPs have concluded that there is no evidence that the chips were the cause of the illness of the children,” said Stroebel. The police, however, are busy conducting testing on substances found as part of their ongoing investigation.
Previous articles:
- Spaza shop D-day looming, only 150 registered
- Spazas get 21 days to re-register or close their doors
- Scuzzy spaza closed in blitz
- Ins and outs about food labelling
- Nine children hospitalised after sharing packets of chips
‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’
