Dearth of health inspectors in Soweto ‘jeopardises safety of our children’

In the wake of the hospitalisation of more than 100 children and the deaths of six in Gauteng linked to suspected food poisoning, government officials enforced consumer protection regulations and by-laws and conducted raids on spaza shops that exposed widespread non-compliance.

This week, the National Consumer Commission alongside other stakeholders inspected 29 spaza shops in Soweto.

Gauteng has recently experienced a series of suspected food poisoning incidents. This month, six children died in Naledi, Soweto, allegedly after eating contaminated food from a spaza shop. On 10 October, more than 70 learners on the West Rand required medical attention in a suspected food poisoning outbreak. Five days later, 47 primary school learners in Pretoria were treated for similar symptoms. On 17 October, 25 learners in Bronkhorstspruit fell ill with suspected food poisoning.

Read more: ‘He could no longer speak. He kept vomiting’ – Soweto grandmother describes ‘poisoned’ child’s final moments

Mourners at the funeral service at the Naledi, Soweto, community hall on 13 October of five children who died after allegedly consuming snacks from a local spaza shop. (Photo: Sharon Seretlo /Gallo Images)

Last week, Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said: “We must take a decision as a society that we are not buying at the spaza shops when we are not sure where they are buying their products. We are not buying at spaza shops where spaza shops are not registered in their municipalities.”

Small Business Development Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams told Newzroom Afrika that her department “does not have authority to intervene in the space” of spaza shops.

What do the regulations say? 

On Wednesday, Daily Maverick observed inspections at spaza shops in Naledi, some of which uncovered alarming levels of non-compliance. Many spaza shops operate from containers that are not in a good condition, and some owners even sleep inside them to thwart break-ins.

The R638 Food Regulations stipulate that food premises including spaza shops must uphold hygiene standards, implement food safety practices, and participate in regular inspections.

However, at several spaza shops that were inspected, there were food items without expiration dates, without barcodes or with partially rubbed-off labels, making it difficult to verify their origin or authenticity.

Some sweets, chips and biscuits were labelled in foreign languages, while others were incorrectly labelled, with information about their manufacturers missing.

Some food products were discoloured and some were stored alongside chemicals. There were also damaged canned goods on the shelves.

Before Naledi, spaza shops were inspected in Limpopo, Northern Cape,  Western Cape and Eastern Cape. Gauteng was the most non-compliant, said the commission’s spokesperson, Phetho Ntaba.

“While we are comfortable that we have covered the length and breadth of Naledi, we are quite concerned about the level of non-compliance where consumers are exposed to unsafe goods. We are talking about baby formula, where you find that the shelf life has long passed,” said Ntaba.

Section 55 of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) stipulates that consumers have a right to safe products. If products are unsafe, the commission can order a recall and investigate. Suppliers found violating the CPA can face prosecution and administrative penalties of up to R1-million or 10% of their turnover.

The CPA also allows consumers to claim damages for injuries caused by unsafe or defective goods as well as inadequate instructions or warnings about potential hazards associated with the use of any product.

Shop inspections 

During the inspections, at least six shop owners were ordered to recall some of their products and 12 people were arrested on charges including being in the country illegally.

Consumer goods council members and law enforcement inspect a spaza shop in Naledi on 14 October. (Photo: Fani Mahuntsi / Gallo Images)

Attempts to engage with some of the shop owners were unsuccessful because of the language barrier. Most did not have records of where they had purchased their products.

When asked if he was aware that some of the products had expired, a Bangladeshi national who identified himself as Ali, responded: “I don’t know. My boss will [be] here tomorrow."

Palesa Kambule, the deputy president of the Soweto Business Forum, said that for the past decade the forum had unsuccessfully attempted to get the provincial government to compel all spaza shops to purchase their products from verified vendors.

“With our government, the only time they will stand up is when there is death,” said Kambule.

Health inspectors 

The deaths of the six children also highlighted the dire need for more health inspectors. The City of Johannesburg has 33 environmental health practitioners for Soweto, which has a population of more than 1.5 million. Naledi alone is believed to have more than 88 spaza shops.

The DA’s shadow MEC for education in Gauteng, Sergio Isa dos Santos, said: “In a recent oversight of local spaza shops in Soweto, it was revealed that there are 16 inspectors assigned to oversee 19 wards in Region D1 Soweto. This is considerably lower than the global health standards of having one inspector per 10,000 people.

“This deficiency jeopardises the safety of our children and secure communities.”

Read more: Gauteng Health department issues urgent warning after huge spike in child food poisoning cases

Corrie Bezuidenhout, Johannesburg’s deputy director of environmental health, denied that the city had not been conducting regular inspections at spaza shops. The last inspection, he said, was in August.

“Yes, we are understaffed, but I would not say we are incapable of doing our job,” he told SABC news.

Poisoning caused by contamination  

Gauteng health spokesperson Motalatale Modiba said: “Most food poisoning incidents are as a result of contamination due to food being stored near chemicals such as pesticides and rodenticides. It is important that the public avoids using any chemicals near food or drinks to prevent accidental ingestion or contamination.

“The public is warned never to buy food that has passed it expiry date as the quality of food is compromised and may result in food poisoning.”

To mitigate against the sale of expired food, the DA believes in a comprehensive strategy that includes verifying that spaza shops have the requisite compliance certificates and ensuring that all food and drink establishments offer items that are safe, uncontaminated and have not expired. DM