Published: 7 hours ago

The Bulawayo City Council has intensified enforcement action against illegal trading and unsafe food practices following the discovery of 1.5 tonnes of rotten elephant meat at Hillside Junior School and the seizure of nearly 128 kilogrammes of uninspected beef at a Barbourfields butchery.

The shocking findings emerged during routine inspections by council health officials, which also revealed widespread licensing breaches, poor hygiene practices and multiple public health violations across the city.

According to a report presented to the Health, Housing and Education Committee, council inspectors conducted 1 715 inspections in April, resulting in 66 formal notices and numerous penalties issued to non-compliant businesses.

The inspections uncovered a growing number of unlicensed operations, including illegal kitchens, unregistered butcheries, unauthorised bottle stores, restaurants operating without registration certificates and supermarkets trading without council approval.

Inspectors also raised concern over poor food handling practices, including premises operating without hot water, unhygienic preparation areas and food being prepared in open spaces exposed to contamination risks.

During the enforcement operations, council also condemned large quantities of food deemed unsafe for human consumption, including expired beverages, dented canned goods, spoiled meat and improperly labelled or repackaged products.

Among the most serious cases was the destruction of 1 500kg of rotten elephant meat discovered at Hillside Junior School, which health officials declared unfit for consumption due to spoilage.

At a butchery in Barbourfields, inspectors also confiscated and condemned nearly 128kg of beef after it was found to be uninspected and unwholesome.

Other seized items included expired yoghurt, cooking oil repackaged into unsuitable containers and products with tampered or erased expiry dates.

Residents have also raised complaints about illegal bottle stores, unlicensed food outlets and informal butcheries operating in suburbs such as Cowdray Park, prompting council to verify and confirm several of the reports.

The local authority says it is preparing coordinated blitz operations targeting offenders as part of efforts to enforce municipal by-laws and protect public health.

Councillors expressed concern over the rapid growth of informal and illegal trading activities, warning that they were contributing to environmental degradation, poor sanitation and increased health risks for residents.

The council says the ongoing crackdown is aimed at improving compliance with health regulations and ensuring that all food vendors and traders operate within the law to safeguard consumers from unsafe products.
- The Chronicle

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