JOHANNESBURG – Some Gauteng residents believe the removal of food vendors from schools will have a devastating impact on small businesses.

This is according to the Gauteng Department of Education instructed schools to suspend food sales as cases of food contamination increase.

The department says this is part of measures to reduce cases of concern.

More than 10 children have died in the province since October due to suspected food contamination.

READ: Lesufi joins call for regulation of spaza shops in Gauteng

This includes six children from Naledi in Soweto who consumed a restricted pesticide that was found in snacks they bought from a local spaza shop.

While residents want the issue addressed urgently, some believe food vendors are being unfairly punished.

“The bigger elephant in the room is still the spaza shops and the manufacturer of these snacks – they don’t have to tell our mothers and sisters not to sell at schools,” said one resident.

“The Department of Health, Department of Education and related departments are the enemy. They should have dealt with this a long time ago – now they are just reactive,” said another resident.

“You are punishing our children because our children are used to having money when they go to school. You created the problem, now you are making it our problem because you did not regulate the spaza shops.”