08 Mar 2018

Ministry of Health and Wellness has stated that there are currently no reported cases of Listeriosis in Botswana and no contamination has been detected in the locally ready-to-eat processed meat products since the outbreak of the disease in South Africa.

Acting permanent secretary in the ministry, Mr Richard Matlhare assured the public that public health system has the capability to handle the bacteria should it be found in the country.

Speaking at a press briefing in Gaborone on Wednesday, he further stated that the ministry in collaboration with key stakeholders had since December 2017 developed a multi-stakeholder food safety preparedness and response plan with set of actions to reduce risk of Listeria in foods.

Since then, he said responses focusing on influencing consumer behavior were put in place and messages spread across different media platforms.

Mr Matlhare further noted that since South African authorities released a statement on status of investigation into the outbreak of Listeriosis on March 4 that was linked with ready-to-eat processed meat products, the ministry had since encouraged the public to avoid high risk foods while observing critical food hygiene and safety behaviours that could prevent Listeriosis.  

He said government had also increased vigilance at ports of entry to strengthen the monitoring system of every food products coming into the country, with particular focus on cold transported food products and farm produce.

He said government through its multi stakeholder food safety preparedness response team had also intensified surveillance for all cold meat products both local and imported in order to safeguard public health and safety. 

“We have also upscaled surveillance and enforcement of the food laws, targeting dairy products made of unpasteurised milk, soft cheeses, ice cream, raw seafood, raw vegetables, crustaceans and shellfish,” he said.

Since Listeria outbreak in South Africa, a total of 948 cases have been reported, while 180 patients are known to have died due to Listeriosis.

On March 4, the South African government released a press statement on the status of the investigation into the ongoing outbreak of Listeriosis, and the outbreak has been determined and linked to consumption of ready-to-eat processed meat products produced by the South African manufactures Enterprise Food Production Factory and Rainbow Chicken Limited.

The affected products include Enterprise (Bokkie, Renown, Lifestyle and Mielikip) and Rainbow (Polony, russian and viennas). These also may include any other ready-to-eat processed meat products manufactured or packaged for other retailers by Enterprise and Rainbow.

South African government further issued the concerned manufactures with safety recall notices through consumer protection act that affected the manufactures’ entire distribution networks, both domestic and international.

Following identification of the source of outbreak of Listeriosis in South Africa, Ministry of Health and Wellness has since recalled ready-to-eat meat products associated with the disease.

Listeriosis is a bacterial infection that primarily affects the elderly, the immune-compromised, pregnant women and new borns. It is contracted by consumption of contaminated foods such as meat, dairy and milk products, fruits and vegetables.

Symptoms of listeriosis include fever, muscle aches, and sometimes nausea or diarrhoea. If infection spreads to the nervous system, symptoms such as headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance, or convulsions can occur. But infected pregnant women may experience only a mild, flu-like illness. END