Grab your bully beef
Grab your bully beef

Grab your bully beef

The outbreak of Listeria in South Africa is considered as the worst global outbreak yet and Meatco has assured its clients of the safety of its own ready-to-eat range of products.
Staff Reporter
Meatco has assured Namibian consumers that their products are safe to use following the outbreak of listeria in South Africa.

In a new statement, the corporation provided further context and a full explanation of its production processes that provide the assurance that all its products, processed or not, are safe to consume.

“It is important to clarify from the onset that our corned meat is cooked in a sterilised can. The basic purpose of this packaging is to protect the meat products from undesirable impacts on quality, including microbiological and physio-chemical alterations.”

According to Meatco Quality Assurance Executive, Rosa Katjivena, Meatco does not compromise on the quality of its products. She said in the food processing industry, food safety and quality assurance requires diverse technical and analytical programmes.

Quality Assurance personnel continually monitor incoming raw products to ensure compliance with relevant standards, microbiological standards, and government regulations.

As the organisation's vision states: “Meatco will have the most sought-after meat brands in selected markets in the long-term interests of stakeholders”.

The canned meat range is part of the legacy of Meatco's production since the early 1980s. The Texan, Eloolo and Ranch brands, which are household names in Namibia and Southern Africa, are part of a long and proud tradition for Meatco.

The corporations' canning operation annually produces almost 16 million cans of corned meat of various sizes according to specific recipes that many have grown to love. All Meatco's canned products are ISO 9001, HACCP- and Halaal-certified.

The corporation added that while its products are safe to use, Meatco as a responsible corporate citizen feels obligated to educate the general public about listeriosis in brief.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) regards the listeriosis outbreak in South Africa as the worst in global history.



But what is listeriosis?

Listeria is a family of bacteria commonly found in our environment and is usually harmless. Listeria monocytogenes is one strain of the listeria family that can cause harm. The illness is called listeriosis. This dangerous strain is transferred from the environment to unprocessed foods of animal products or ready-to-eat processed meats, if hygiene rules are not applied correctly.

Eating foods containing high levels of listeria monocytogenes is generally the cause of illness.

Listeria can cause nausea, vomiting, cramps, diarrhoea or constipation, headache and/or convulsions and fever. Symptoms of listeria usually appear within two to three days after exposure. People most at risk of getting sick from listeria exposure are: pregnant women, babies, the elderly and those with weak immune systems.



How is it spread?

Listeria is spread by eating food that is contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. Food that is not properly washed, cooked/pasteurised, refrigerated, or has been in contact with contaminated cooking surfaces may carry Listeria monocytogenes.

What can be done to prevent the spread of listeria?

Listeria is found everywhere in the environment, so there may be no connection between different outbreaks. The key is to keep the bacteria out of the food chain, either by washing (surfaces of fruit and vegetables), heating (milk pasteurisation, meat cooking), and general hygiene (processing, packaging and cross-contamination). Also, store raw meat on shelves below cooked or open food and clean your hands before, during and after handling any type of food, especially raw meat and poultry.

Refrigerate cold food promptly. Keep the refrigerator at 4 degrees Celsius. Cook thoroughly or boil foods such as hot dogs and poultry products until they are steaming hot.

Wash raw fruits and vegetables thoroughly before eating. Clean all utensils, cutting boards and work surfaces with a mild bleach solution (5ml/1 tsp bleach per 750 ml/3 cups of water) before and after using. Separate utensils for raw and cooked foods.

Follow “sell by” dates especially on packaged foods with a long shelf life and use right away after opening. Pregnant women and people with weak immune systems should thoroughly reheat or steam ready-to-eat meat (such as hot dogs) and poultry products before eating. It is recommended that pregnant women not eat cold cuts and unpasteurised cheese.

STAFF REPORTER

Comments

Namibian Sun 2024-03-28

No comments have been left on this article

Please login to leave a comment

Katima Mulilo: 19° | 37° Rundu: 17° | 33° Eenhana: 18° | 33° Oshakati: 20° | 31° Ruacana: 19° | 33° Tsumeb: 17° | 29° Otjiwarongo: 16° | 28° Omaruru: 18° | 31° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Gobabis: 17° | 28° Henties Bay: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 24km/h, Wind direction: S, Low tide: 10:54, High tide: 04:57, Low Tide: 22:58, High tide: 17:16 Swakopmund: 15° | 17° Wind speed: 29km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:55, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:14 Walvis Bay: 16° | 22° Wind speed: 33km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:54, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:13 Rehoboth: 18° | 29° Mariental: 22° | 32° Keetmanshoop: 21° | 34° Aranos: 21° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 29° Ariamsvlei: 23° | 34° Oranjemund: 15° | 21° Luanda: 27° | 30° Gaborone: 20° | 32° Lubumbashi: 17° | 24° Mbabane: 15° | 23° Maseru: 12° | 28° Antananarivo: 16° | 27° Lilongwe: 17° | 29° Maputo: 20° | 28° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Cape Town: 17° | 23° Durban: 21° | 25° Johannesburg: 18° | 28° Dar es Salaam: 26° | 32° Lusaka: 18° | 30° Harare: 15° | 31° Currency: GBP to NAD 23.95 | EUR to NAD 20.51 | CNY to NAD 2.63 | USD to NAD 18.99 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.33 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.74 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.8 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.27 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.35 | USD to KES 130.98 | USD to NGN 1415.13 | USD to ZAR 18.99 | USD to ZMW 24.77 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 73909.5 Up +0.41% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1516.02 Down -0.13% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 12981.98 Up +0.34% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 28224.37 Down -2.87% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 207.29/OZ UP +0.76% | Copper US$ 3.97/lb DOWN -0.0042 | Zinc US$ 2 447.40/T DOWN -0.37% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 86.98/BBP UP +0.68% | Platinum US$ 905.24/OZ UP +1.16% Sport results: Weather: Katima Mulilo: 19° | 37° Rundu: 17° | 33° Eenhana: 18° | 33° Oshakati: 20° | 31° Ruacana: 19° | 33° Tsumeb: 17° | 29° Otjiwarongo: 16° | 28° Omaruru: 18° | 31° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Gobabis: 17° | 28° Henties Bay: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 24km/h, Wind direction: S, Low tide: 10:54, High tide: 04:57, Low Tide: 22:58, High tide: 17:16 Swakopmund: 15° | 17° Wind speed: 29km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:55, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:14 Walvis Bay: 16° | 22° Wind speed: 33km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:54, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:13 Rehoboth: 18° | 29° Mariental: 22° | 32° Keetmanshoop: 21° | 34° Aranos: 21° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 29° Ariamsvlei: 23° | 34° Oranjemund: 15° | 21° Luanda: 27° | 30° Gaborone: 20° | 32° Lubumbashi: 17° | 24° Mbabane: 15° | 23° Maseru: 12° | 28° Antananarivo: 16° | 27° Lilongwe: 17° | 29° Maputo: 20° | 28° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Cape Town: 17° | 23° Durban: 21° | 25° Johannesburg: 18° | 28° Dar es Salaam: 26° | 32° Lusaka: 18° | 30° Harare: 15° | 31° Economic Indicators: Currency: GBP to NAD 23.95 | EUR to NAD 20.51 | CNY to NAD 2.63 | USD to NAD 18.99 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.33 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.74 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.8 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.27 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.35 | USD to KES 130.98 | USD to NGN 1415.13 | USD to ZAR 18.99 | USD to ZMW 24.77 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 73909.5 Up +0.41% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1516.02 Down -0.13% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 12981.98 Up +0.34% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 28224.37 Down -2.87% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 207.29/OZ UP +0.76% | Copper US$ 3.97/lb DOWN -0.0042 | Zinc US$ 2 447.40/T DOWN -0.37% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 86.98/BBP UP +0.68% | Platinum US$ 905.24/OZ UP +1.16%