Corporate News
Shoppers at the Tuskys Chap Chap branch in Nairobi. The family-owned retailer has opened six stores around Kampala. PHOTO|FILE
By MUGAMBI MUTEGI
In Summary
- Tuskys, Kenya’s second largest retailer, made its entry in Uganda in 2010 by buying out two supermarkets – Half Price and Good Price.
- Tuskys’ Bwaise branch was closed on Tuesday last week after an impromptu visit by the authority, which came across rotten chicken and beef as well as expired goods on the supermarket’s shelves.
- Following the scandal, the authority launched an inspection of all supermarkets in Kampala to make sure they met health standards.
Five Tuskys Supermarket stores in Uganda have been
cleared by the Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) following a health
inspection that was triggered by the discovery of rotten meat on sale in
one of its outlets.
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Tuskys’ Bwaise branch was closed on Tuesday last week after
an impromptu visit by the authority, which came across rotten chicken
and beef as well as expired goods on the supermarket’s shelves.
Peter Kauju, the KCCA spokesperson, said in an
interview Tuesday the other five Tuskys stores have been cleared after a
week-long inspection.
“We discovered rotten meat being sold in the Bwaise
store and that is why we closed it,” said Mr Kauju in a telephone
interview with the Business Daily.
“Our team carried out an inspection in all the Tuskys stores and we cleared them so they are still open.”
The closed store, however, has to comply with
KCCA’s health standards before being cleared to re-open. The store was
still closed at the time of going to press yesterday, but an employee at
one of the other outlets told the Business Daily that it will “most likely be re-opened tomorrow (Wednesday).”
Tuskys, Kenya’s second largest retailer, made its
entry in Uganda in 2010 by buying out two supermarkets – Half Price and
Good Price – which were subsidiaries of G.K.O. Medicines Limited, a
pharmaceutical company.
To date, the family-owned retailer has opened six
stores located in Bugolobi, Kitintale, Makerere, Nakulabye, Ntinda and
Bwaise, all towns in and around the capital city.
Bwaise, where the affected store is based, is a suburb approximately 12 kilometres from Kampala city.
Tuskys ran into problems with the city’s health
inspectors after they discovered food unfit for consumption being sold
in the store.
Daily Monitor, a Nation Media Group
publication in Uganda, quoted KCCA as saying that Tuskys was also using
toxic chemicals (sodium benzoate) to preserve the fresh meat, posing a
health hazard to unsuspecting customers.
The authority also found chicken carcasses that were rotten or showing signs of rotting.
High-traffic locations
“Meat carcasses found in the storage room did not
have any proof of inspection or certification as being fit for human
consumption,” said Robinson Nabaasa, KCCA’s health operations officer.
“The solid waste management was found wanting as
most of the condemned and unwanted meat was found stored in the cold
room together with fresh meat meant for human consumption.”
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