Be compliant and keep NMB safe – NMBM

The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality
is calling on all holders of Municipal environmental health authorisations to
renew their certificates to ensure safe and legal operations in their
establishments and to avoid penalties.

This comes after the Metro noted
with concern the decrease in applications coming into the Public Health
Directorate for the mandatory renewal for the authorisations,
while other establishments were found to be operating with expired or outdated authorisationsduring routine inspections across the Metro.

This includes supermarkets,
butcheries, restaurants, vehicles transporting food, kitchens in schools,
prisons, hospitals, day centres, old
age homes, beauty salons and panel beating and spray
paintingfacilities.

NMBM Public Health Mayoral
Committee Member, Cllr Thsonono Buyeye said
individuals and businesses needed to comply with the various Municipal health authorisations as
covered by different legislation including theRegulation 363 of 22 May 2013 which is framed under the National Health Act,
2003 (Act 61 of 2003), providing guidance for the process of management of
human remains including transportation and storage of human remains.

“All mortuaries and funeral
undertake premises are authorised through a certificate of competence through
these regulations. There is also the Air Quality Act, 2004 (Act 39 of 2004)
which provides for the issuance of the atmospheric emission licenses (AEL),
provisional atmospheric emission licenses (PAEL) and permits for controlled
emitters. The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Air Pollution Control Bylaws
provide for permitting of fuel burning equipment and open burning.

“The Nelson Mandela Bay
Municipality Health Bylaws provide for health certificate for health care waste
generators and waste transporters. Regulation 39561 of 24 December 2015
prescribes the National Environmental Health Norms and Standards for Premises and
Acceptable Monitoring Standards for Environmental Health Practitioners.
Regulation 39561 also provides for issuance of various health certificates for
premises including renewal/validity time frames for various health
certificates,” said MMC Buyeye.

He called on holders of the
authorisations from all sectors within NMBM to renew their certificates as an
expired health authorisation is similar tooperating a business without an authorisation.

“Health authorisations are issued for health compliance of premises including
the business operations and in the absence of a health authorisation the
compliance human health risks of premises and surrounding environments cannot
be determined. From the human occupancy point of view, the human health
supportive aspects of premises will remain unknown in the absence of a health
authorisation.”

“We also have food handling premises where Regulation 638 of 22 June 2018
replaced Regulation 962 of 23 November 2012 and Regulation 918 of 30 July 1999
which were repealed. Certificates of Acceptability (CoA) for some food handling
premises which were issued in terms of the repealed regulations mentioned
above, all expired on 22 June 2019. This means that all food premises, new and
existing, which do not have certificate of acceptability issued in terms of
Regulation 638 of 22 June 2018 should have applied for a Certificate of
Acceptability before 29 June 2019 as per the transitional arrangements of
Regulation 638 of 22 June 2018,” Buyeyeadded.

 

The renewal of health authorisations is important for food safety, sustainable
maintenance of health standards, curbing the threat of counterfeit foodstuffs
and non-compliant food handling premises.

Food handling includes manufacture, processing, production, packing and
packaging, preparation, keeping, offering for sale, storage, transportation or
display for sale or for serving of foodstuffs.

 

Holders of the authorisations are required to check immediately if their
authorisations are still valid as operating any business which requires
authorisation without a valid authorisation is unlawful.

 

All certificates or authorisations are to be renewed before the expiry date.
For queries, owners are urged to contact NMBM health offices in Gqeberha,
041-5065413 or 041 5087420. In Kariega and
Despatch 041-9941296 or email publichealth@mandelametro.gov.za.

 



 

Issued by the Nelson
Mandela Bay Municipality
Communications Office.