South African food giant Tiger Brands said late on Wednesday it had received confirmation of the presence of the LST6 listeria strain in samples taken from its Enterprise Polokwane processed meat facility.
Tiger Brands in March recalled all products from its Enterprise facilities in Polokwane, Pretoria and Germiston after the health minister said products from the Polokwane plant had been linked to an outbreak of listeriosis which had killed 180 people.
Initially, the company said tests ordered by the National Consumer Commission for listeria were inconclusive, and the samples had been sent for re-testing.
"The purpose of this announcement is to update shareholders on the results of the independent laboratory re-testing which was carried out in respect of the presence of LST6 in the above samples," it said on Wednesday.
"On 24 April 2018, Tiger Brands received confirmation of the presence of LST6 in these samples," it said, adding that its plants would remain closed "while remedial work continues".
The company said it had been actively engaging with the department of health and the National Institute of Communicable Diseases on its findings and would continue to collaborate with them on actions taken to address the findings.
Tiger Brands faces a R425-million legal claim from people who consumed processed meat products manufactured by its subsidiary and became ill as a result, as well as their dependents.
