The listeriosis outbreak has negatively affected trading partners’ perceptions of the safety of food exports from SA and could have financial repercussions that extend far beyond the firms at the heart of the crisis, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies told Parliament on Wednesday. "We have a significant reputational challenge which we now need to confront," he said. "Recovering from incidents like this is a massive challenge for companies concerned. They need to embrace it with a spirit of transparency. The same applies to us as a country," he told a joint sitting of the portfolio committees on agriculture forestry and fisheries, health and trade and industry. The outbreak is the worst in recorded history and has been responsible for 185 deaths since January 2017, says the Department of Health. On March 4 the National Institute for Communicable Diseases identified Listeria monocytogenes, the bacteria that causes listeriosis, in ready-to-eat processed meats made by Tiger Brands a...
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