- Kensington spaza shops were inspected on 26 November, revealing serious food safety violations, including mouldy food, rodent droppings, and unlabelled products.
- Two shops were temporarily shut, and contaminated goods were discarded.
- Authorities emphasised this is a crackdown on non-compliance to protect public health, following recent food-poisoning incidents across the country.
Mouldy muffins, unlabelled food items, rodent droppings on the floor and on products. These were some of the details noted at a spaza shop and takeaway in Kensington on Tuesday 26 November.
The inspection was led by Ward 56 councillor Cheslyn Steenberg, Kensington police and members of the City’s environmental department.Food contamination has been in the spotlight lately, following the death of 23 children and nearly 900 food-poisoning cases reportedly linked to spaza shops.
Steenberg said: “We found some products that were expired and had mould on it, and could not be used for human consumption. One shop did not have a pest-control certificate. At another takeaway a walk-in fridge was converted into a bedroom. We found fermenting potatoes, which had been cut and left in water. There were flies in the kitchen, and there were frozen unlabelled products, an indication that they had been in the fridge for quite some time.”
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According to Steenberg two establishments, one based in Voortrekker Road and the other at the 12th Avenue Shopping Centre, were temporarily shut and the products confiscated and safely discarded.
“This is not a matter of us wanting to clamp down on any nationality,” he said, “but a clampdown on non-compliance. I hope we can make a meaningful change to ensure the safety of people in the ward.”
Resident Jameelah Liedeman said: “Spaza shops in the area have been a concern long before the problem of the food poisoning. I believe it’s the correct thing that all spaza shops are registered because there must be measures in place to keep these people accountable.”She described some of her misfortunes following a purchase at a spaza shop.“
I have in the past week bought milk twice from a spaza shop and discovered that it was sour the next morning. I personally addressed my concerns with the shopkeeper and explained they shouldn’t buy from suppliers that are not transporting perishables in the correct manner.”
Addressing the National Council of Provinces on Thursday 28 November, President Cyril Ramaphosa said as part of government’s efforts to address such crises, multi-disciplinary teams have conducted inspections of spaza shops across the country.
He said nearly 200 000 spaza shops have been visited and more than 1 000 spaza shops, supermarkets and warehouses have been shut. Large quantities of goods have been confiscated and numerous fines have been issued for violations of bylaws.
