South Africa
Pilchards recall widens─── 07:42 Tue, 25 Feb 2020
The National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS) has ordered the removal of certain brands of tinned pilchards from shelves, adding more names to the recall announced at the weekend.
Consumers who recently bought 400 gram tins of pilchards in tomato sauce manufactured by West Point Processors were told to return them.
Earlier on Monday, the National Consumer Commission said it will take serious steps against West Point for failing to inform it of the recall.
The NRCS has ordered all formal retailers, retailers and informal traders to remove and stop selling the 400g pilchards in tomato sauce and 400g pilchards in chilli sauce with immediate effect.
It said the products bear the markings starting with ZST29 and ZSC29 on top of the can for easy identification.
"Food safety is a priority for NRCS and therefore the organisation is engaging all roleplayers to ensure that the affected products are removed from the market to protect customers against unsafe products in line with its mandate," the NRCS said in a statement.
"The manufacturer has already started the recall and the NRCS will continue to monitor the process with all the other wholesalers and retailers, including the informal market, to ensure that the process is handled efficiently."
