Proof of purchase is not required, and opened products may also be returned.
One of South Africa’s largest grocery retailers, Shoprite, has recalled all cereal products manufactured by its supplier, Heartland Foods.
If you recently purchased any Heartland Foods cereal products from Shoprite, Checkers, Usave and OK Foods supermarkets, you can return them to your nearest supermarket for a full refund.
The retailer did not provide specific dates for when the products were purchased or manufactured.
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Shoprite recalls cereal products
In a media statement, the retailer said it is voluntarily recalling the products due to the supplier’s ‘inaccurate nutritional labelling’.
“While no complaints have been received in this regard, we take our responsibility to consumers seriously and have therefore, after numerous interventions with the supplier, decided to issue a voluntary product recall,” reads the statement.
Proof of purchase is not required, and opened products may also be returned.
Which products is Shoprite asking for?
The statement lists the following products as the ones that have inaccurate nutritional labelling:
- Corn Flakes (Morning Mills, Ubrand, Housebrand, Ritebrand, OK Foods)
- Bran Flakes (Morning Mills, Housebrand, Ritebrand)
- Muesli (Morning Mills, Ubrand)
- Instant Oats (Morning Mills)
Branded products:
- Multi Grain Flakes (Heartlands)
- Crunchy Flakes (Heartlands)
- Wheaty Flakes (Heartlands)
- Granola (Heartlands)
- Corn Flakes (Heartlands)
- Bran Flakes (Heartlands)
“We are committed to maintaining the highest standards of food safety, and our food scientists and technologists are working closely with the National Consumer Commission (NCC) on this voluntary recall.”
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‘Products may be a concern for diabetic people’
The NCC said in a media statement that it is aware of the issue.
“The recalled products may not deliver the full nutritional benefits as indicated on the packaging.
“Additionally, some products contain slightly higher sugar levels than stated, which could be of concern for individuals with diabetes if the product were specifically selected based on sugar content in nutritional information.”
Apart from South African stores, NCC added that the products were exported to Angola, Ghana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland and Zambia.
Products are safe for consumption
Heartland Foods told News24 they are confident that the products are safe for consumption.
“There is nothing hazardous to human consumption. We haven’t had any customer complaints.”
The group had found inconsistencies around packaging compliance that needed to be sorted out.
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