KwaZulu premier Thami Ntuli says his government will carry out regular inspections of spaza shops and monitor borders for illicit food smuggling to combat the scourge of child poisoning deaths that has gripped the country.
At a special meeting in Durban on Friday, Ntuli said the province’s strategy would ensure that spaza shops complied with food safety regulations and that his administration would also carry out awareness campaigns to educate consumers about food safety, signs of spoilage and how to report unsafe practices.
The KwaZulu-Natal government would also provide education and training on food safety practices, including proper handling, storage and cooking techniques, for owners and staff. Access to resources such as handwashing stations, refrigeration units and safe food storage solutions would also be provided and the province would partner with NGOs to promote best practices and provide support for spaza shops.
Ntuli was speaking the day after the Limpopo education department said scores of children had been taken to hospital with poisoning in Giyani after eating snacks and food provided under their primary school’s nutrition programme.
He told district mayors, municipal and senior managers from across the province, as well as eThekwini mayor Cyril Xaba and MEC for cooperative governance and traditional affairs Thulasizwe Buthelezi that the rising problem of people falling ill after consuming food purchased at spaza shops had emerged over the past two years.
“So far, reports indicate that these illnesses are linked to poor food safety mechanisms in township tuckshops, while others are attributed to suspected poor hygiene and food handling practices,” he said.
“Learners are the most affected, with some of them dying and others being admitted to hospital. The majority have fallen sick in groups after consuming products from the same vendor, creating a link between spaza shops and this food poisoning crisis. Concerns have also been raised regarding the packaging of food.”
Hundreds of children across the country have reportedly become ill after eating suspected contaminated food and snacks. Incidents have been reported in Free State, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and Limpopo in recent weeks.
The fact that most of those affected, including in Giyani, are primary scholars, has led to suggestions that school nutrition programmes should also be scrutinised as a possible cause of the spate of food poisoning cases.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi told a media briefing last weekend that, since January, there had been 441 food contamination cases in the province, which had resulted in 23 deaths.
On Friday, Ntuli said the national government was treating the issue as a national security threat and the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure was leading the response.
Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni announced on Wednesday that President Cyril Ramaphosa would soon address the nation on the issue.
The department of health has also asked the National Institute for Communicable Diseases to trace and examine the sources of the poisoned foodstuffs and make recommendations.
Ntuli said the provincial government had received a recent report of suspected food poisoning in the Cambana area in uMzumbe, Ugu district, where three children had died and their grandmother was hospitalised.
“Even though postmortem results are yet to confirm the actual cause of death, it is alleged that the victims fell ill and passed away due to food poisoning. The three victims were children aged 2, 6, and 11 years old,” he said.
Ntuli said KwaZulu-Natal’s response was in line with Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa’s gazetting of standard draft by-laws for township economies on 4 November.
Their objective is to boost township economies by creating a supportive environment for small businesses, focusing on economic inclusion, job creation and empowering local communities. The laws also aim to curb illegal business operations.
“In the medium-to-long term, there will be continuous monitoring, starting with organised multisectoral teams targeting districts and engaging brand owners and communities to upscale monitoring capacity,” Ntuli said.
“Today’s meeting is a crucial step in aligning our efforts with the national regulations and addressing pressing health concerns in KwaZulu-Natal.”
Ntuli said the provincial government would continue to conduct unannounced operations against undocumented foreign nationals operating spaza shops to check the quality of goods sold. He stressed that the operation was not “anti-foreigner” but a proactive move to prevent the eruption of vigilantism.
“We will not allow illegal operations and spaza shops to jeopardise the lives of the people of KZN. It is said that the future of a country lies in its youth and children, who are among the most vulnerable in our society, and therefore they must be protected by the state,” he said.
Ntuli added that the government would step up border management and security measures to prevent illegal human crossings and the smuggling of illicit goods.
“As part of our larger strategy, we will be closely monitoring our border management, ensuring that security is strengthened at all borders to deal with illegal immigrants and undocumented foreign nationals entering the country,” he said.
“Goods and services entering this province from other countries will be carefully monitored, checked and inspected to prevent the infiltration of illicit goods.
“Just a few weeks ago, during operations in some foreign-owned spaza shops in the Durban CBD, police found a box of cigarettes with a barcode indicating it was a jacket, a clear indication of the deceptive practices some vendors use to bypass regulations.”
Another concern was that some shop owners “sleep, bathe and conduct all personal activities within the same spaza shops where food items are sold”, he said.
“Such practices raise serious hygiene concerns and increase the risk of contamination. Additionally, negligent use of pest control chemicals in these shops often leads to contamination of food items.
“Expired goods are also a major problem, as some spaza shop owners tamper with expiry dates to make them appear as though they are still within the safe consumption period.”
He said the KwaZulu-Natal government had been made aware that “several industries” were prioritising the hiring of illegal foreigners over thousands of unemployed, but capable, locals.
“This practice not only violates labour laws but also exploits desperate undocumented foreign nationals, often paying them far below the minimum wage,” he said.
During a recent government clampdown in the Mandeni area in KwaSithebe, Ntuli said some firms shut their doors because they knew that over 90% of their employees were illegally in the country and undocumented.
“We will conduct further unannounced inspections in these areas to ensure compliance with labour laws and prevent such exploitation,” Ntuli said.
He urged all district and local mayors to intensify their collaboration with the South African Police Service (SAPS), private security companies, neighbourhood watch forums and community policing forums to combat illegal activities.
“Mayors, in partnership with SAPS, should conduct regular operations in spaza shops and other parts of their municipalities. In areas lacking crime-fighting forums, mayors should take steps to establish or revitalise these structures,” he said.
“This operation is not an anti-foreigner campaign, but a proactive measure by the government to prevent the situation from escalating into vigilantism. By addressing these issues now, we can prevent frustration and resentment within local communities and avoid potential confrontations with illegal foreigners.”
