The government, which has been criticised for taking too long to find the cause of the outbreak that has spread since January 2017, had yesterday linked it to a meat known as “polony”, which is made by Tiger’s Enterprise Food.
The government is also investigating a plant owned by RCL Foods that makes a similar product.
Both companies have suspended processed meat production at their plants after health authorities ordered a recall of cold meats linked with the outbreak from outlets both at home and abroad.
The UN World Health Organisation has said the outbreak is the largest ever recorded, with nearly 1,000 cases reported around the world over the past 14 months.
Listeriosis is a serious bacterial infection which is spread when people eat food contaminated with the bacterium.
The most common foods to be contaminated are raw or unpasteurised milk as well as soft cheeses, or vegetables, processed foods and ready-to-eat meats and smoked fish products.
South Africa’s Health Ministry revealed the source was found after pre-school children became ill from eating polony products traced back to processed meat producers.
The ministry’s communications director Popo Maja told Reuters: “The meat processing industry was not cooperating for months. They did not bring the samples as requested.
“We had long suspected that listeria can be found in these products.”
When asked why it had taken 14 months to find the cause of listeria, Mr Maja added: “It is not that we are incompetent, or that we have inadequate resources.” He said all firms in the industry were being examined.
Tiger Brands, Escort, RCL Foods, Rhodes and Astral said they have all complied with requests from the health authorities.
Lawrence McDougall, CEO of Tiger Brands, told a media briefing there was no direct link between the deaths and its cold meat products.
Yesterday, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said the outbreak had been traced to a Tiger Brands factory in the northern city of Polokwane. Authorities are also looking at a second factory from the firm.
Rhodes said it produced processed can meat, different from the cold processed meat made by others, while Astral said it produced fresh and frozen chicken, not colonies and other items connected with the outbreak. both firms said their products were safe.