Peanut butter suppliers given 14 days to test and report back on safety

All manufacturers of peanut butter products have been called on to test for aflatoxin, and to present their results to the National Consumer Commission within 14 days.

This comes after the recall of various peanut butter products earlier this month over concerns about the levels of the toxin. These include Pick n Pay No Name Smooth Peanut Butter, Eden Smooth Peanut Butter and Eden Crunch Peanut Butter, and certain batches of Dis-Chem's Lifestyle Food peanut butter. The latest recalls also affected Woolworths' peanut butter ice cream and certain Eat Naked products.

The consumer commission's notice this week affects all peanut butter, peanut butter-based products and products with peanuts, including but not limited to chocolates, sweets, cookies, ice cream, and peanut butter spreads.

Acting consumer commissioner Thezi Mabuza said the commission is concerned by this high rate of recalls.

“To understand this challenge better, the commission has issued a notice in terms of section 60 (2) (a) of the Consumer Protection Act to manufacturers and suppliers of peanut butter. The notice requires suppliers to immediately conduct an urgent investigation, test their products for aflatoxin, and present their results to the commission within 14 days of receiving the notice. 

“In addition to this, the NCC extends the same call to other suppliers of products with peanuts to also investigate and submit their results to the NCC.

“While investigating their products, manufacturers, importers, and retailers are urged to take immediate corrective measures where their products are found to be unsafe. These include removing the products from the shelves following the NCC’s product recall protocols, informing relevant regulators in the space, as well as notifying consumers,” Mabuza said.

The risk of consuming products with higher than acceptable levels of the toxin may lead to health complications such as nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.

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