The National Consumer Commission (NCC) of South Africa recalled a specific brand of hair shampoo manufactured in the country and exported to neighbouring countries and across the continent.
According to the South African NCC, the manufacturer of the shampoo stated that tests conducted on the already packaged 50ML products contained bacteria.
As such, the govt agency recalled the product released in 2023.
“The beauty product which was produced in April 2023, was distributed in South Africa, and exported to countries such as Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Kenya, Ghana, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Morocco, and Nigeria,” read the statement in part.
Additionally, users were warned that the continued use of the product was likely to cause scalp irritations, especially among those with compromised immune systems.
Consequently, the South African government urged its citizens to discontinue use of the product and return it to the point of sale for a full refund.
“While this is a single-use shampoo, we urge South Africans who might still have these products in their possession to stop use and return to the point of purchase for a full refund” NCC’s Deputy Commissioner, Thezi Mabuza stated.
Additionally, the South African government confirmed initiating a probe into the product's manufacturing and recall guidelines.
However, at the time of going to press, the Kenyan Government was yet to issue a statement on the matter.
This follows a similar occurrence on January 3, when the Rwanda Food Drugs Authority (RFDA) announced that it was recalling a drug manufactured in Kikuyu, Kenya.
In a statement, RFDA directed that it was recalling batches of flu drugs which had been imported to the country from Kenya.
RFDA indicated that it had earlier alerted the Kenyan manufacturer of discolouration in the tablets.
