The listeriosis outbreak and revelations that it is linked to the Enterprise Foods manufacturing plant in Polokwane have shone a light on the gaps and complexity of food safety regulations in South Africa.
A range of government role-players — the departments of health, agriculture, forestry and fisheries, and trade and industry — manage food safety. But local government is responsible for municipal health services such as enforcing food safety legislation, according to the health department.
“The South African food control system is quite fragmented,” said Dr Lucia Anelich, a food microbiology and safety specialist who heads up Anelich Consulting.
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