uMgungundlovu conducts inspections at local spazas
Officials in uMgungundlovu are making inspection rounds at local spaza shops and other food facilities.
The district municipality has teamed up with other authorities in the KZN Midlands amid growing concerns over the safety of food being sold at such outlets.
This week, 21 pupils in Mpumalanga province were hospitalised due to suspected food poisoning.
READ: MEC calls for spaza shops inspections across KZN
It's the latest in a series of similar incidents affecting children across the country.
Several cases have been deadly.
uMgungundlovu Mayor Mzi Zuma says they will conduct the audits on a weekly basis to check compliance with food safety regulations.
"The audit focuses on three areas: checking the environment under which food is prepared, stored, and distributed and also looking at the actual food product - who produces the food, what the life span is for those particular foods. We decided to extend it but also look into who is running those spaza shops."
ALSO READ: 'Food poisoning' sparks calls for increased focus on school nutrition
The mayor has also urged communities to make a habit of checking the food they buy for expiry dates or anything suspicious.
"Also, to check if those items have not been repackaged, such that the expiration date is removed and something is written over the original expiration date, and part of the excise we are doing is consumer education."
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