Another witness called in extended Noakes hearing

An additional witness has been called by the Health Professions Council of SA at the hearing of Professor Tim Noakes, which has further extended proceedings initially meant to take seven days.

Bioethicist Professor Willem Pienaar is now expected to testify after being secured by the complainant over the weekend.

Noakes, whose book The Real Meal Revolution promotes a low carb, high fat (LCHF) lifestyle, was called before the council after a complaint was lodged by the former president of the Association for Dietetics in SA, Claire Julsing-Strydom.

The complaint centred on a tweet from Noakes to a mother who asked what foods she should feed her baby.

Noakes advised the mother to wean her child onto LCHF foods, which he described as real foods.

The tweet read: "Baby doesn't eat the dairy and cauliflower. Just very healthy high fat breast milk. Key is to ween baby onto LCHF."

On Monday, day six of the proceedings, only the complainant’s witnesses had testified.

Michael van der Nest, for Noakes, opposed the introduction of a new witness.

Chairperson Joan Adams said surprise last-minute witnesses "only works in the movies – this is not a game".

However, the panel unanimously decided to allow the witness to testify.

Advocate Meshack Mapholisa, for the HPCSA, on Friday mentioned the possibility of an additional witness, but would not confirm his name until he had secured him for the hearing.

This after the qualifications of witness Professor Salome Kruger were questioned, a move which Mapholisa described as "bizarre".