Dispatch Live reports that the National Consumer Commission (NCC) says it is investigating Grandisync CC, the supplier of Howe Instant Noodles, after finding “reasonable suspicion” that it supplied unsafe goods that posed a potential health risk.
Acting NCC commissioner Thezi Mabuza said: “The NCC has commissioned an investigation against Grandisync CC, who is a supplier based in Uitenhage, who supplied the Howe instant noodles,” she said.
Now, according to Business Insider, The National Consumer Commission on Thursday named Howe instant noodles as the brand linked to the suspicious deaths of at least three children.The three, aged 11, 7, and six months, died on their way to a clinic in the Eastern Cape in early November after eating noodles and, not long after, complaining of nausea and stomach cramps.
Later in the month, two Mpumalanga siblings died after allegedly eating noodles.
Thato Makofane, 9, and her 13-year-old brother, Keamogetswe, died within an hour of each other after eating the noodles last week.
The deaths of the Embalenhle siblings come a week after two siblings and their cousin died in the Eastern Cape over a week ago.
Motherwell police had to open an inquest docket after 11-year-old Sinothando Ngwendu, 7-year-old Olwam and 4-month-old Athenkosi Ngwendu died while being transported to healthcare facilities. They had visited relatives where they ate noodles, and later become sick at home, where they died.
Embalenhle police spokesperson Constable Busi Mthethwa said the only link in the deaths of the siblings was that they had shared a packet of noodles on the morning before they left for school.
The children’s grandmother, Winnie Makofane, told the media at their funeral this weekend that the family suspected the noodles, which she believed were poisoned, might have caused their deaths.
On the morning of 9 November, Thato and Keamogetswe were preparing to go to school. Thato is said to have left the house on her own, while her brother stayed behind to finish homework.
He left shortly afterwards but, within minutes, returned home to tell his mother, Motlatsi, that his sister had collapsed near the bus stop.
Motlatsi and another family member rushed to the bus stop where Thato, who was a Grade 4 pupil at Osiweni Primary School, was picked up and rushed to a nearby clinic.
She was certified as dead shortly after she arrived.
When his sister was rushed to the clinic, Keamogetswe and his two-year-old brother, stayed behind at home.
While at the clinic, Motlasi called a neighbour to check up on the youngsters. When the neighbour, Mantoa Motloung, arrived at the house she found Keamogetswe lying on the floor.
She called Motlatsi to inform her about the boy. Motlatsi rushes back home to collect her son, but when they arrived at the clinic, he was also declared dead.
During the post-mortem, it could not be established what the cause of death was. Tissue samples of both children were taken and sent to the police forensic laboratory in Pretoria for analysis.
The children were buried on Sunday.
TimesLIVE reported that three children, including a four-month-old, died, allegedly after eating noodles in the Eastern Cape.
Eastern Cape police are investigating the tragic deaths of three young children from Gqeberha who allegedly died after eating noodles bought from a local shop.
Police spokesperson Col Priscilla Naidu said it was alleged that the three children — Sinothando Ngwendu, 11, Olwam Ngwendu, 7, and four-month-old Athenkosi Ngwendu — left with their grandparents to visit family in New Brighton on Saturday.
On Sunday, Sinothando went to the shop and bought a packet of noodles, Naidu said. “She cooked it and the three children ate before leaving to go back to Motherwell. When they arrived home in Motherwell, she complained of feeling nauseous,” Naidu said.
Naidu said the girl was given water by her grandmother.
Later, seven-year-old Olwam also complained of stomach cramps and nausea.
“While being driven with private transport to the Motherwell clinic, they passed away.”
Shortly after the two children left for hospital, Athenkosi also died while on the way to hospital in another vehicle, Naidu said, adding that a postmortem would be conducted.
An inquest docket was opened.
Mabuza said that while the commission was awaiting laboratory results, the investigation would help understand the nature, causes, extent and degree of the risk to the public.
“Consumer safety is at the heart of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA). Should our investigation reveal that indeed Grandisnyc CC contravened the provisions of the act, we will refer the matter to the National Consumer Tribunal for the imposition of an administrative fine of 10% of their total annual turnover, or R1,000,000 — whichever is the greater,” she said.