In a move that will dramatically change how medicines reach the majority of South Africans, health officials have recently met with a number of retailers including PnP, Checkers, Clicks and Dis-Chem, exploring the possibility of allowing public health patients to pick up their meds from private pharmacies. “We have been very concerned about the recent medicine stock-outs, so we are looking into contracting private pharmacies to supply our patients with their medicine,” explains Precious Matsoso, our Director General of Health. The disabled, people on antiretrovirals and chronic medication will receive priority according to the proposed new system, and if the DG’s words are anything to go by, we might even see the plan start to roll in the next couple of months.

Comment: Nice work guys. Because when it comes to having access to life-saving drugs, we can all agree that no one should be better or worse off.

Just about one moon ago to the day we enthusiastically informed you of the opening of Freshstop’s 133rd and 1st township store and whaddya know, they’re at it again. The convenience store brand has just opened its 135th store (we lost track of the 134th somehow, but can you blame us at the rate they’re going) in none other than SA’s oldest township, Alexandra. Mr Bullah, the store’s owner, who has been in the fuel industry for some 15 years, can barely contain his excitement. “The feedback and response from our local customers have been extremely positive and they are very excited to have such an upmarket offering on their doorsteps,” says he. As is the case with other Freshstops around the country, punters can get their usual array of fresh fruit and veg at the one in Alex, as well as hot foods and a larger grocery selection. And let’s not forget the self-service Lavazza coffee station.

Comment: Because you just never know when you might need a strong cuppa java while walking the dusty streets of Alex.

Ok, so maybe we’re a tad late with this one, but you lot in retail-landia haven’t given us much else to go with this week, have you? So up to Botswana we go, for the opening of Builders Warehouse’s second store in that land of deltas and deserts. Massbuild invested R20.5 bar on the store, which comes just short of two years after the opening of its first store in Gaborone back in ’11. And you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d walked straight into your local BW too, since the new store’s design and layout is in line with SA Builders Warehouse outlets. Commenting on the new store, Chief Pattison seemed well chuffed, announcing that it is “in line with Massmart’s Africa expansion strategy and we have several new sites approved in our existing African markets.”

Comment: Although the Group’s expansionist plans should really come as no surprise to anyone, now should they?

Who?”, we hear you cry. You know, Mondelez… the largest confectionery business in Mzansi, makers of all manner of yummy treats like Cadbury Dairy Milk, Jacobs coffee, Halls, Oreo and Trident / Stimorol gum. Oh… so you didn’t hear that Kraft is now going by a brand spanking new name? Well they are, and Mondelez International is just itching to leverage Mondelez SA as its gateway into Southern and Central East Africa. And what will happen to the host of brands that we all know and love? Grow and expand, that’s what, building on their “exciting and impressive legacy.” Mondelez SA, you will be pleased to know, also aims to be an employer of choice by combining talented and motivated teams with its portfolio of great brands, as well as investing in state-of-the-art manufacturing infrastructure and routes to market to complement the growth agenda.

Comment: Sweet stuff then from the snacky giant, who seems dead set on the path of even greater gigantism.

Science and engineering multinational DuPont acquired a majority stake in Greytown-based Pannar Seed just last week marking “one of the biggest transactions in DuPont’s history and the biggest” it has made in Africa. DuPont Pioneer you see, a subsidiary of DuPont and the world’s leading developer and supplier of plant genetics, is particularly interested in Pannar, since the local company is one of Africa’s largest seed breeders, producers and suppliers. And with operations in nine countries on the continent, it will mean that DuPont can now place a solid stake in the place it believes represents a significant opportunity for improved productivity. With 35-million hectares of unusued land just waiting to be farmed, an expanding middle class and burgeoning population in Africa, this acquisition was a real no-brainer for DuPont who evidently have their sights firmly set on bigger, better, faster.

Comment: And the race for a little (or large) piece of the continent continues.

SA’s trade deficit narrowed a little in the month of June, according to the latest figures coming out of SARS, who apparently don’t only sit around tracking whether or not you have filed your tax return correctly. Which reminds us… but we digress… Why the slight reprieve? Higher exports and falling imports for a change, although this year’s performance to date is still much weaker than the last. In fact, according to experts, the gap between what comes in and want goes out is still 50% higher than the biggest gap recorded before the mini-Armageddon that was the 08/09 recession. So what now? Well, unless investment and other inflows pick up, pressure on the rand will continue…

Comment: … and we won’t bore you with the consequences of what that will mean this time round.

While the rest of us um, ah and debate whether banning alcohol advertising will actually make a difference to how much of the good or bad stuff (depending on your take) we consume, the younger ones among us seem have rather emphatically made up their minds already. According to a survey by Pondering Panda, 49% of youths aged 18 to 34 felt that a government ban on alcohol ads was a sick (that’s good to you, old man) idea, while 31% gave it a thumbs down. And the rest, just shrugged their shoulders in a too-cool-for-school kinda way and didn’t have an opinion on the matter.

First it was (and still is) the chicken, then oranges, then the sugar, and now frozen spuds. Seems cheaper EU imports just keep filtering their way to our shores, with the respective manufacturer, consumer and retailer associations each expressing their strong opinions as to whether it’s a good or a bad thing. In the spotlight now – frozen potato chips – imports of which have risen 1.4% since 2009 which local producers say is damaging the market. We’ve gone round and round on this one and still haven’t firmed an opinion. So we’ll let you decide... and when you have, please do let us know.