Reinders says she is not convinced that Magistrate Deon Van Rooyen erred or misdirected himself when he made the order to refuse Sekwetje Mahlambi bail in October. She says Mahlambi, who stands accused of murder and robbery, failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the state does not have a prima facie case against him. Meanwhile, Mahlambi and his co-accused Sekola Matlaletsa will appear again in the Senekal Magistrate's Court, near Pual Roux in the Free State, on January 22 after the case was postponed for further investigations.

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A valuable quality grading system for one of South Africa’s herbal teas – the honeybush tea – was recently developed. Brigitte du Preez, who obtained a PhD in Food Sciences at Stellenbosch University (SU) in the Western Cape, is the mastermind behind this grading system. Du Preez, during her research, sought to answer questions such as how does one distinguish a high-quality brew of honeybush tea from a mediocre one? And how one can describe and quantify the differences between brews in a way that improves quality control in the supply chain, from crop to cup? Du Preez says her goal was to develop a user-friendly method to define the sensory qualities of the tea. This includes its aroma, taste as well as its appearance. Furthermore, she explains that a lot of studies have been conducted in the past two decades around this indigenous tea by the Agricultural Research Council (ARC). With that, a great deal of work has been done in order to develop a sensory wheel. Du Preez adds that what lacked was a quality grading system to communicate the quality of honeybush tea, “because at present, tea of variable quality is entering the market and can be harmful to the reputation of honeybush tea.”




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