South Africa suspends sale of canned sardines also consumed in Mozambique – A Verdade

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South Africa suspends sale of canned sardines also consumed in Mozambique – A Verdade

12:41 CAT | 27 Feb 2020

All photos: A Verdade

The South African National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS), operating under the country’s Department of Trade and Industry, on Monday (24) ordered that all formal wholesalers, retailers and informal traders remove from their shelves 400g tins of various brands of pilchards in tomato and chili sauce, in order to safeguard “consumer safety”.

These products are also sold in supermarkets, stores and informal stalls in Mozambique.

A press release from the South African food safety watchdog orders “all formal Wholesalers, Retailer and informal Traders to remove and stop selling the 400g Pilchards in Tomato Sauce and 400g Pilchards in Chili Sauce with immediate effect. This follows the outcome of an investigation the organisation conducted which revealed a deficiency in the canning process. Some of the cans were compromised during the sauce filling step on the production line and could therefore affect the safety of consumers”.

The statement, which @verdade has seen, says that deficiencies were found in canned products manufactured in 2019 by Cape Town-based West Point Processors, which produces the following brands:

Deep Catch
Mammas
Prime Ocean
Spar
Sunny
Shoprite Ritebrand
Cape Point
Checkers Housebrand
U Brand
Saldanha
West Point
OK Housebrand

@Verdade found some of these brands still being sold in Shoprite and Premier Mica supermarkets in Mozambique on Wednesday 26th.

Following this decision, education authorities announced on Wednesday (26) the decision to suspend the serving of canned pilchards as part of school meals.

ALSO READ: South Africa: Recalled pilchards was exported to neighbouring countries, says NRCS

Canned sardines air available in all informal markets and grocery stores, often at very reasonable cost, and are consumed by mostly low-income Mozambicans.

By Adérito Caldeira

Source: A Verdade