Non-compliant businesses and shops linked to any poisoning incidents or found to unlawfully stock hazardous chemicals will be shut down.
- A massive campaign of door-to-door inspection of all spaza shops, tuck shops and other informal traders will be undertaken, starting with Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.
This will be undertaken by inter-disciplinary inspections teams consisting of the South African Military Health Services, environmental health practitioners, the South African Police Service, the National Consumer Council, labour inspectors and others.
The initial phase of inspections will need be completed within a month.
- All registered manufacturers of Terbufos will be inspected to ensure that no products are diverted into the non-agricultural market. The supply chain process for distribution and sale of Terbufos will be investigated to ensure that controls are being adhered to and that there is accountability for who they sell to.
- Regulations and protocols on the traceability, repackaging, destruction and sale of pesticides, insecticides and foodstuffs will be strengthened.
The following measures will be implemented with immediate effect.
To get hazardous pesticides off the street:
- The spaza shops which have been implicated in thedeaths of children will be closed with immediate effect.
- All spaza shops and other food handling facilities must be registered within the municipalities in which they operate within 21 days from today. Any shop that is not registered within 21 days and does not meet all health standards and requirements will be closed.
- The South African Police Service and other law enforcement agencies will be required to investigate, arrest and prosecute offenders. This will involve close cooperation with all registered manufacturers and suppliers.
- Integrated multidisciplinary inspection teams will undertake compliance inspections of food handling facilities, manufacturers, distributors, wholesaler and retailers. This will include spaza shops and general dealers.