(Bloomberg) -- South Africa declared a spate of food poisonings a national disaster, following the death of at least 22 children.
The deaths, as well as hundreds of cases of illness nationwide, have been linked to food bought from small convenience stores in townships, some of which contained traces of chemical compounds used in insecticides.
President Cyril Ramaphosa last week unveiled a plan to remove these harmful pesticides from the streets and shops and ordered that all so-called “spaza shops” and food-handling facilities register with their respective municipalities within 21 days.
The crackdown has been accompanied by unsubstantiated claims on social media linking the sale of tainted food to shops owned by immigrants. That has sparked concern of a repeat of xenophobic violence that South Africa has witnessed in the past.
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