Episode 107: Food Safety in Kenya
On July 14th 2019, NTV aired a feature titled Red Alert, which revealed that Kenyan supermarkets and retail outlets were using sodium metabisulfite to increase the shelf life of meat products by making them look fresher for longer, so as to prevent losses. They were also found to repackage these products and change the dates so as to dupe their customers into buying these products past their sell-by date. The conversation that arose after was intense, pointing out that supermarkets were using excess quantities of the compound, without disclosing it to consumers, which was exacerbated by changing the dates on products to deceive customers.
This is not the first time we have had widespread panic and anxiety over food in Kenya. We have had reports of sukuma wiki and spinach being grown next to sewers and being toxic and containing heavy metals, water containing microplastics, chicken being fattened using antibiotics, formalin being used to preserve meat, maize with aflatoxin, sugar containing mercury, and fruits being ripened using calcium carbide. This is in addition to pesticide use in farm products that elicits the same concerns. We’re joined by Wanjiru Kamau, an agricultural and environmental policy expert, to discuss food safety in general in Kenya.
Resources
The Kenya Food and Drugs Authority Bill (2019)
Kenya National Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (2015 – 2020)
Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS)
Pest Control Products Board (PCPB)
Dietary risk factors for non-communicable diseases in Kenya: findings of the STEPS survey, 2015
Food safety and quality management in Kenya: An overview of the roles played by various stakeholders
Food Safety in Kenya: Focus on fruits and vegetables
SBS Senior Lecturer Publishes Case Study on Food Safety Concerns in Kenya
Why food safety is a major national issue
Lifestyle Diseases: An Increasing Cause Of Health Loss
Heavy Metal Concentration in Vegetables Grown around Dumpsites in Nairobi City County, Kenya
Coca-Cola admits presence of plastic in Dasani
Antibiotics in meat: why Kenya needs to do more
Keep birds free from antibiotics, use supplements
Kenya’s ‘contaminated sugar’ row: What we know
Report reveals seized sugar contains Mercury
Tests show dangerous levels of toxins in foods sold in Nairobi
Could your fruit vendor be selling you poison?
Experts poke holes in proposed food and drugs law
How safe is your food? Be careful what you eat
Conversation on food safety is long overdue
Study warns of highly contaminated fruits,vegetables in open markets and supermarkets
The local food revolution in Brazil’s schools
Learning from Brazil’s Food and Nutrition Security Policies