Cape Town — Gauteng Finance and Economic Development MEC, Lebogang Maile, led a food safety blitz at spaza shops and supermarkets in Soweto to determine whether stores were selling contaminated goods.
Spaza shops throughout South Africa have come under scrutiny following the rising number of foodborne illnesses in South Africa. President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that all spaza shops needed to be registered by 17 December 2024, but this deadline was extended to the end of February 2025.
According to EWN, Maile visited two supermarkets in Soweto – Shoprite in Dlamini and Supa Store in Moroka. Both stores were found with several violations of food safety regulations as expired goods and rodent waste were found on some products.
“The MEC said that they had issued notices to the stores.
“With some of the findings, they don’t qualify for the closure but they are weaknesses that we have raised with them and they have agreed that they are going to attend to them. There are a few products that we found on the shelves that have expired and we have removed those,” Maile explained.
[WATCH] Gauteng Finance MEC Lebogang Maile is inspecting food businesses in Soweto for safety compliance. #Newzroom405 pic.twitter.com/wDSTjXprXj
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) December 23, 2024
According to The Citizen, Maile said rat droppings were found in one of the bigger food outlets and he said inspectors would do a follow-up on the store to ensure they’re compliant.
“You cannot close down a shop with 1000 products just because one or two of their products were bad. We remove the products, give them a warning and come back to see if they’re complying,” Maile said.
He said the shops did not need to be closed but had weaknesses that needed to be addressed. He said the shops would not be shut down but the government would assist with resources to ensure they are compliant.
He added that the provincial government would now target bigger food outlets to ensure their compliance.
“We’re going for the big guys now. The focus has been on spaza shops only, but some of the bigger guys are also not compliant. It is selfish and greedy for business people to do business without caring for the people they’re catering to. We have to make sure that things work in this country,” said Maile.
[WATCH] Gauteng Finance MEC Lebogang Maile says ongoing inspections, particularly at larger food outlets, are to ensure that hygiene and safety standards are met. He also vows that the government will apply more pressure and resources to protect consumers. #Newzroom405 Zuki… pic.twitter.com/meTF79iS5S
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) December 23, 2024
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
