The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) has designated 14 brands of maize flour as being unsafe for human consumption.
The 14 brands’ makers, according to the Bureau, did not adhere to the necessary criteria. Aflatoxin, a chemical that is fatal, is also present in several of them.
Ndovu maize flour, Prestige sifted maize, sima tamu, range corn, top white, diamond sifted maize, Bel’s organic, Winnies ugali afya, and family are a few of the products that were flagged.
Other varieties include Jodari, Jibe maize flour, Jema, Mugambo, and Jasiri sifted maize.
All merchants carrying the flagged brands have been requested by KEBS to take them off the shelf.
The standards authority has additionally cautioned the millers to adhere to the requirements laid forth for the brands that it has not yet tested before they are placed on the market.
According to KEBS, the measure shouldn’t be interpreted as a complete prohibition but rather as a chance for the millers to make amends and guarantee that consumers may get high-quality products.
The nation has already struggled with issues involving brands of subpar maize flour being made public.
High levels of aflatoxin-toxins produced by specific fungi that are present on agricultural crops are the main cause for concern.high level of aflatoxin damage the liver.
In a previous study, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that harmful levels of aflatoxin cause the destruction of nearly 25% of the world’s annual food production.
