Zambia called on South African retail chains to also withdraw products produced at the Enterprise Food plant 300 kilometres northeast of Pretoria that health officials say was the source of the outbreak.
Since January 2017, 948 people have contracted listeriosis which is caused by bacteria from soil, water, vegetation and animal faeces which can contaminate fresh food — notably fresh meat. At least 180 have subsequently died, according to official figures.
The Department of Health ordered retailers to immediately recall affected products.
The chief executive of Tiger Brands, which owns Enterprise, denied that its products had been shown to be responsible for the deaths.
“There is no direct link with the deaths to our products,” Lawrence MacDougall told a news conference.
MacDougall did acknowledge that the government had linked the ST6 strain of listeria bacteria detected in Enterprise facilities with the outbreak that has resulted in 180 deaths.
“We are being extra cautious and vigilant, we are recalling all products made from the two facilities” affected, he said, adding that the government had only ordered the company to withdraw three product lines.
“Any loss of life is tragic. It is devastating for me to have our products linked to this outbreak.”
Enterprise-branded products accounted for 28.2% of processed meat sales in South Africa in 2017. The local market was worth 6.02bn rand ($500mn) last year alone.
Tiger Brands, one of South Africa’s food giants, made pre-tax profits of 4.27bn rands ($360mn) in 2017.
