Regulations amending the Regulations governing microbiological standards for foodstuffs and related matters (No. R. 1588 of 2002)

STAATSKOERANT, 20 DESEMBER 2002 No. 24176 11 No. R. 1588 DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH DEPARTEMENT VAN GESONDHEID 20 December 2002 FOODSTUFFS, COSMETICS AND DISINFECTANTS ACT, 1972 (ACT No. 54 OF 1972) REGULATIONS GOVERNING MICROBIOLOGICAL STANDARDS FOR FOODSTUFFS AND RELATED MATTERS: AMENDMENT The Minister of Health has, in terms of section 15(1) of the Foodstuffs, Cosmetics and Disinfectants Act, 1972 (Act No. 54 of 1972), made the regulations in the Schedule. SCHEDULE 1. In these regulations 'the Regulations" means the regulations published under Government Notice No. R. 692 of 16 May 1997, as corrected by Government Notice No. R. 1296 of 16 October 1998, as amended by Government Notices Nos. R. 427 of 5 May 2000 and R. 490 of 8 June 2001 and corrected by Government Notice No. R. 491 of 8 June 2001. Amendment of regulation 1 of the Regulations 2. Regulation 1 of the Regulations is hereby amended by the insertion of the following definitions in the correct alphabetical order: " 'honeybush tea' means the product obtained from the leaves, flowers and stems of the Cyclopia genus; 'rooibos tea' means the product obtained from the needlelike leaves and fine stems of the plant Aspalathus linearis.". 12 No. 24176 GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 20 DECEMBER 2002 Amendment of regulation 8 of the Regulations 3. Regulation 8 of the Regulations is hereby amended by the substitution for paragraph (b) of the following paragraph: '(b) When tested in accordance with SABS method 221, the total viable colony count shall not exceed 100 colony forming units per milliliter. The total viable colony count shall be measured within 24 hours after bottling, the water being maintained at 4% f 3% during this period. Thereafter, up to and including the point of sale, the total viable colony count shall be no more than that which results from the normal increase in the bacterial content that the water had at source.". Renumbering of regulation 12 of the Regulations 4. The Regulations are hereby amended by the renumbering of regulation 12 as regulation 14. Insertion of regulations 12 and 13 in the Regulations 5. The Regulations are hereby amended by the insertion of the following regulations after regulation 11: "12. Rooibos tea at the point of sale shall comply with the following microbiological specifications: For rooibos tea in bulk, the total viable colony count shall not exceed '75 000 colony forming units per gram; for rooibos tea packed in retail packaging, the total viable colony count shall not exceed 150 000 colony forming units per gram; Escherichia coli shall not exceed 20 colony forming units per gram; and STAATSKOERANT, 20 DESEMBER 2002 No. 24176 13 (d) Salmonella organisms shall be absent in a sample of 25 grams of the product. 13. Honeybush tea at the point of sale shall comply with the following microbiological specifications: (a) The total viable colony count shall not exceed 75 000 colony forming units per gram; (b) Escherichia coli shall be absent in a sample of 1 gram of the product; and (c) Salmonella organisms shall be absent in a sample of 25 grams of the product.’. DR M: E. TSHABALALA-MSIMANG MINISTER OF HEALTH