Pretoria - The National Consumer Commission (NCC) has reiterated the call for product manufacturers and suppliers to conduct regular quality check routines on products following the recall of McCain South Africa's products due to "small fragments" of glass being found in some of the goods.
The consumer watchdog announced on Wednesday that McCain South Africa had informed the commission of its "precautionary recall" of their sliced beans and Spar Stir Fry products.
The NCC said according to McCain South Africa small fragments of glass were found in the products necessitating the need for the recall.
Acting Commissioner Thezi Mabuza said they were informed that the products in question were manufactured from July 2021, and urged consumers to look for the product description to determine whether the products in their possession formed part of the recall.
“We urge consumers who might have these products not to consume them but to return them back to the retailer for a full refund or an exchange.”
“The safety and protection of South African consumers are the mainstays of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA). While the commission welcomes a precautionary recall by manufacturers and suppliers, we want to reiterate that regular quality check routines and processes are vitally important in order to deliver goods or services that will satisfy customers' needs."
Mabuza's comments follow the recall of Similac Alimentum 400G infant formula also in February this year.
In that instance, the commission said the manufacturer of the formula, Abbott Laboratories-Nutrition had also informed them of a voluntary recall of the product following a global recall as announced by the supplier.
The NCC said the product was manufactured at their plant in Sturgis, MI, in the United States of America and imported to South Africa and other countries.
They said the supplier confirmed that the recall was prompted by consumers who reported that their infants presented some symptoms after ingesting the formula in the United States.
According to Abbott Laboratories, only four cases were reported in the USA, indicating the presence of Cronobacter and Salmonella in the infant formula which was a cause for concern.
“As the Commission, we want to emphasize that while there are no cases reported in South Africa as yet, we urge consumers who might have bought this product not to feed their infants but to immediately return it to the point of purchase for a full refund," she said at the time.
Mabuza added that the commission would be monitoring the recall of the McCain products based on its recall guidelines, while at the same time also allowing the supplier to conduct further investigations to detect any further potential risk.
Pretoria News