Johannesburg - It took two consumers lodging complaints before a chemical contamination was detected in Parmalat's 200ml PureJoy apple juice, the National Consumer Commission (NCC) said on Wednesday.
"Although we are pleased with Parmalat's swift action to investigate and recall the product, it is still concerning that two consumers had to first suffer discomfort and inconvenience before the product contamination was detected," NCC commissioner Ebrahim Mohamed said in a statement.
"Consumers have a right to fair value, good quality and safety in terms of the Consumer Protection Act, and should receive nothing less from a supplier. We trust that Parmalat will fully remedy this problem and prevent any recurrence."
READ: Parmalat recalls apple juice - report
He said the NCC's investigations unit was monitoring the product recall and would undertake sample inspections to ensure all affected products were recalled.
The Star reported on Tuesday that Parmalat had recalled a batch of the 200ml UHT PureJoy juice as it was contaminated with cleaning chemicals.
"All the unsold affected products have already been recalled from our distribution system, as well as, where possible, from the stores to which it had been distributed," Parmalat spokesperson Andre Mahoney was quoted as saying.
The product was distributed mainly in the Western Cape.
Mahoney said an initial investigation pointed to a factory problem that led to the release of "a small number of packs" being contaminated with the cleaning chemicals.
The company said the juice was unfit for consumption and no other products were affected by the contamination.