On Wednesday, the Ministry of Health ruled out the Rainbow Chicken Limited (RCL) as a source of the deadly ST6 strain of listeria.
According to Popo Maja, spokesperson of the Ministry of Health, laboratory tests conducted by the Ministry confirmed that the strains found in the production facility in Wolwehoek, Free State are not of the ST6 strains. This corroborates with the results reported by RCL Foods at a French laboratory.
They have also confirmed that the primary source of of the listeriosis outbreak, which killed more than 180 people thus far, is still unknown. Nationally, more than 900 cases of listeriosis have been confirmed.
According to a National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) expert, this makes the class action suit against Tiger Brands even stronger. The deadly ST6 strain of listeria was found in 26 places in the Tiger Brands Polokwane Enterprise factory. This was also found on the outside of two rolls of Enterprise polony.
Law firm, Richard and Spoor Attorneys, will represent the families who lost loved ones to the listeria-tainted meat produced by Tiger Brands.
The firm’s list of victims has reached 100 people, and they are ready to submit a full application to court for their class action suit against the implicated food production company.
Richard Spoor says the firm selected 10 victims, out of the 100, who have signed the petition to appear in court to deliver testimony.
The application includes the affidavits of the victims, a document to explain the historical background of the case, as well as expert witnesses.
Once the application has been approved, they will have to go through a discovery procedure to gain the attention and participation of other victims of the listeriosis outbreak.
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