Reports about shops and retailers flagged for selling expired food to consumers raise a major concern about food safety monitoring mechanisms and compliance.
According to the National Consumer Commission, at least 33 compliance notices were issued to shops in the Free State for contravening several sections of the Consumer Protection Act. These contraventions include shops selling basic foodstuff which are perishable items and that had either long passed their sell-by date or had no shelf-life or date markings affixed on them.
This, the commission said, had the potential to cause harm to consumers and risk their lives which we all ought to be concerned about. The commission said it first discovered while carrying out inspections in March. Late last year, we reported in this publication that in Gauteng, for example, there is a shortage of environmental health inspectors so dire that in Joburg, there is one official responsible for checking food sold to every 26,000 people. The national standard is one inspector for a population of 15,000 people.
This information came to light on the back of reports of a schoolchild dying after eating snacks bought at the taxi rank. It sparked anger in the community which blamed local traders for allegedly selling expired food.
Given the limited resources and shortage of inspectors, this therefore means that inspections meant to protect the public from harm can only cover a small proportion of food available in the market. This appears to be the case with the inspection conducted by the National Consumer Commission in the Free State.
While the inspection and issuing of notices is welcome, it certainly isn’t enough to protect the most vulnerable people in our society, especially those who rely on cheaper food items because of their economic situation.
This perhaps calls for a need to change the approach to dealing with the problem. Instead of seeking to increase the number of inspectors, raising public awareness and providing other means to encourage businesses to comply with food safety regulations could be another way to protect the public from harm. What the findings of the commission also highlights is the need for more collaboration by consumers, businesses and the local government which is at the coal face of regulation with bylaw enforcement and compliance.