Bureau seals 8 shops over standards breach
Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS) yesterday ordered temporary closure of eight supermarkets in Blantyre, Lilongwe and Mzuzu for contravention of standardisation and quality practices, including selling of products past their expiry dates.
The shops closed during the raid include five Sana Cash ‘N’ Carry, ChipikuPlus in City Centre and Food Lovers Market in Kanengo.

In the case ChipikuPlus and Food Lovers, they were briefly cautioned and advised to make amends before reopening for business hours later.
For Sana, the bureau closed three shops in Limbe, Blantyre and Sana Mega Store in Lilongwe and another in Area 13 as well as one in Mzuzu branded Sanaa for failing the quality assurance test.
During the market inspection in the sealed shops, the bureau noted poor hygiene standards, inadequate storage facilities and unhygienic business premises, marred by cockroaches.
In some of the shops, the bureau also found that some products in the backrooms had gone bad while others had no visible expiry dates.
Speaking after the inspection, MBS communications officer Wazamazama Katatu said the exercise was part of the ongoing consumer protection initiatives that they conduct in line with the bureau’s mandate of promoting standardisation and quality assurance in Malawi.
He said: “The MBS appeals to all companies both in production and selling chains to ensure that they keep robust quality control systems and adhere to Malawi relevant standards.
“We call upon all consumers in the country to remain quality-conscious and collaborate with MBS by, among others, tipping MBS through its toll-free number 462 for any suspect malpractice, check MBS quality marks for locally produced products and furthermore, consumers should verify dates whenever buying products in the shops before getting encouraged to buy by shelf price tag.”
Katatu said the shops will be fined based on the gravity of non-conformity.
Sana Cash ‘N’ Carry officials refused to comment on the matter.
Meanwhile, Consumers Association of Malawi (Cama) executive director John Kapito yesterday commended MBS for the initiative, observing that the protection of consumer safety and health is better than the profits that shops make.
He said: “Shops abuse consumers through provision of substandard products, unsafe foodstuffs and it is always important for traders to ensure they respect the laws that promote safety of consumers.
“We are advising consumers to stop buying products that have been tampered with and are unhealthy. Consumers should stop being influenced by lower prices on food items that are not safe for human consumption.”
Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation executive director Michael Kaiyatsa commended MBS for carrying out the inspections, saying consumers need to be protected.
He called on MBS to have frequent exercises so that consumers are able to buy quality products all the time.
“It is important that shops should be supplying customers with quality goods and not goods that have expired or of poor quality,” said Kaiyatsa.
MBS is the national standards body responsible for developing and enforcing standards that ensure the quality of products and services in the country.