Why we need to do more to secure Kenya food safety standards

Customers countercheck the prices of maize flour at a supermarket in Nakuru earlier this year. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Food safety for animal and human nutrition is a public health concern in any jurisdiction worldwide. It is sensitive to a country’s social stability and development and needs to be prioritised.

There have been several incidents in the recent past, especially in schools, where contaminated food has harmed consumers. It is worrying that discussions about food safety are only incident-based and hardly capture national attention regularly.

We must sustain conversations about food safety beyond the regulatory environment and bring it out in the mainstream. I am delighted that the Food and Feed Safety Control Coordination Bill (National Assembly Bill No. 21 of 2023) is making good progress in Parliament, and we may soon have a solid law to sustain food safety.

The quality of what we consume has socio-economic ramifications in the case of productivity, as food safety is a crucial pillar for food security.

According to the World Health Organisation, unsafe food causes 600 million cases of foodborne diseases each year worldwide and 420,000 deaths.

To guarantee safety, we can be investing in training at various levels. At the institutional level, let us constantly train our staff to identify hazards while handling products; we must also ensure adherence to food safety norms.

If it entails packaging food safely, which materials and preservatives can be used? If we are partnering with food delivery services, what standards do we set to avoid contamination?

As we engage farmers, let us train them on how to handle food from their farms. Recently, a report revealed that growers are using toxic pesticides, which, among other effects, impact food safety because of the chemicals they contain. We can educate farmers on suitable pesticides to avoid contaminating their crops, which find their way to our plates.

We can guide them on the safe ways to store their produce after harvest to prevent contamination and ensure that what they sell in the market is safe for consumption. We can monitor the kind of water they use to irrigate their farms, as contaminated water can increase the risk of foodborne diseases.

Secondly, we need stronger legislation and policies to curb cases of food contamination. The National Food Safety Policy of 2021 is meant to protect and promote consumer health while also seeking to harmonise food safety standards and regulations.

The lack of sufficient resources by oversight and regulatory bodies restricts their mandate to function. This also makes them prone to corruption, which puts public health at risk.

Strong laws will safeguard against food adulteration for quick economic gains. We can make our laws better and stronger by lobbying lawmakers on how best we can promote food safety as stakeholders.

Thirdly, let us be aware of contemporary threats to food safety through research. The debate about genetically modified foods is also a topical issue that should be actively faced with enhanced information sharing.

Technology is one of the main drivers of food production and distribution. Adopting food tech systems will come in handy in ensuring safety.

The writer is Unga Group Strategy and Innovations Director. Email: [email protected]