President's deadline for spaza shop registration creeping closer
Last month, all food handling establishments were given 21 days to get onto a municipal database - and that period ends on Friday.
Garden Route District Municipality officials inspect goods at a spaza shop. Picture: Gardenroute.gov.za
CAPE TOWN - President Cyril Ramaphosa's deadline for spaza shop registration is days away.
Last month, all food-handling establishments were given 21 days to be on the municipal database and the period ends on Friday.
The ultimatum follows hundreds of cases of food contamination since September and the deaths of at least 23 children - some who were confirmed to have died of poisoning linked to the agricultural pesticide - Terbufos.
ALSO READ: More spaza shops closed in Garden Route Municipality after blitz operations
Local governments countrywide have also been increasing compliance inspections.
Eyewitness News checked in with the Garden Route District Municipality.
The senior manager for Municipal Health and Environmental Services, Johan Compion, says officials conduct monthly operations targeting food establishments, to ensure compliance.
"Currently, we have 1245 spaza shops that have a valid certificate of acceptability. Since the president spoke, we have done 930 inspections and held 837 health education sessions... had 31 blitz operations... closed 39 premises."
As part of the education sessions, officials have raised awareness among communities about food labels that have been tampered with and banned pesticides.