Ensuring that your child is not a victim of food poisoning
The government has classified foodborne illnesses as a national disaster. Here is how you can minimise the chances of your child becoming a victim.
Over the past couple of months, many South African scholars were admitted to the hospital, and some even died due to foodborne illness - a condition caused by consuming contaminated foods or beverages.
Food Safety News reports that 'almost 900 foodborne disease incidents have been recorded, and 22 children have died across South Africa since September.' This number is alarming, especially given that proper food safety measures can help prevent this.
President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the government is launching a public education campaign on food safety.
Ramaphosa revealed that some of the deaths linked to foodborne illness are the result of hazardous chemicals such as Terbufos. The chemical is used in some areas or schools to control rats.
“Terbufos is an organophosphate chemical that is registered in South Africa for agricultural use. It is not allowed to be sold for general household use. However, Terbufos is being informally sold as a so-called ‘street pesticide’ for domestic use in townships and informal settlements to control rats,” the President said.
“Samples were taken from 84 spaza shops in the Naledi area. Of these, three had evidence of Terbufos. After stringent testing, a chip packet found on one of the children who had died had traces of Terbufos on both the inside and the outside of the packet. As part of the investigation into the Naledi deaths, inspectors confiscated a number of illegal pesticides from spaza shops,” he said.
Ramaphosa has called on communities to work together to ensure that hazardous chemicals are not used in homes or places where food is sold.
“Once again, South Africans are called upon to work together to overcome a great difficulty. But we are far from helpless. There is much we can do. Each of us needs to be better informed about the risks of pesticides and other dangerous products. By working together, by enforcing the law, by being alert and responsible, we will be able to bring an end to these tragedies,” the President said.
He also advised those who support local vendors to only buy food from stores that are licensed to sell food.
“As consumers and parents, if we buy food or send our children to buy food, it must only be from places that are licensed to sell foodstuffs and that observe food safety regulations. We must check that food is prepared in a clean and hygienic area. We must make sure that foodstuffs being sold have clear branding and labels, and that they are not past their sell-by date. We must educate our children about food safety and teach them to check for this labelling themselves,” the President said.
READ: Parents association supports food checks in schools
Parents and guardians also need to have conversations with their children about food safety. Several key things can be done in the home to ensure that children are not put at risk of eating contaminated food.
The South African Meat Processors Association (SAMPA) shares the following advice to minimise the risk of food contamination:
- Washing of hands, food preparation areas, and raw vegetables and fruit thoroughly.
- Separating raw and cooked ingredients.
- Ensuring that food utensils are clean.
- Not using knives used on raw meat to cut cooked or ready-to-eat products in order to avoid cross-contamination from raw to cooked food.
- Bacteria is killed off during the cooking process so follow cooking instructions.
- Keep food at safe temperatures and promptly refrigerate perishable foods at 5 degrees or below.
READ: Ramaphosa to address nation on food poisoning crisis
Children must also be taught how to read food labels and the difference between sell-by and use-by dates. Read more about it here.
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Image courtesy of iStock/ @Henadzi Pechan