RECENTLY, East African countries met in
Bujumbura under the umbrella of the East African Community to discuss
the region's future on food security.
The fact that countries in the region lie on the equator, they are also prone to aflatoxin, which, according to experts, is not only posing a huge threat to food security but is also a hindrance to market opportunities. Countries were represented by various officials mainly from ministries dealing with agriculture.
Papers presented showed various efforts done to address the matter, though some countries admitted that no research had been done so far to establish the magnitude of the problem. Aflatoxins are toxic metabolites produced by fungal species during their growth under favourable conditions of temperature and moisture.
The main cereals affected are maize, sorghum, rice and wheat and other crops like groundnuts and cassava. Scientists have associated aflatoxin with liver diseases and cancer to both humans and animals. Statistics show that in Tanzania cassava and maize production stand at between 4.2million and 6.2million tonnes.
Cashew remained the most important crop, accounting for 128million US dollars in exports by 2011, maize and groundnuts accounted for 8 and 2million US dollars, respectively.
Presenting a paper on behalf of the government of Tanzania, the Senior Fisheries Officer, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock Development, Mr Koddy Melkizedeck said that maize accounts for 33 per cent of the calorific value per capita while the rest remains to other food crops such as cassava and other grains posing a risk of aflatoxin contamination and putting the country's population at risk.
"We are therefore offering trainings to stakeholders (farmers, traders, animal and produce inspectors), registration of storage houses processing establishments, inspection to storage structures and lab tests," he said.
He also noted that institutions have been put in place that ensure quality and food security including the Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives, Tanzania Foods and Drugs Authority, Tanzania Bureau of Standards and Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Development.
"Various laboratory facilities have been put in place in various areas and research institutes as well as higher learning institutions," he said. He added, however, that the undertaking was faced by various challenges including in adequate capacity, facilities and skilled personnel.
"Coordination between agencies and ways of disposing of highly contaminated materials (heavy microbial load) also remains a challenge," he said. Lack of depth research for aflatoxin control, inefficient monitoring, surveillance and cost-effective measures as well as lack of awareness on aflatoxin prevalence and negative impacts is other challenges that need to be addressed.
Presenting a paper on the Burundian situation, a representative from Burundian government said aflatoxin is an area that needs to be studied, adding that the country has no data in place concerning the magnitude of the problem. "Knowledge on aflatoxins in Burundi is limited.
There are no baseline on the incidences and prevalence on aflatoxins," he said. He noted, however, that plans were underway to start sampling and establishing the baseline through the Burundi National Agricultural Research Institute (ISABU) in collaboration with APPEAR project and IITA.
"The Burundi Bureau of Standards and quality control ensures institutional coordination mechanism formed of a network of 14 laboratories. Similarly, it has set standards on corn and wheat flours, compound flours, peanuts, whole grain cereals, milk, butter and cheese," he noted.
The country has no initiatives or programmes on aflatoxin and the public is not sensitised about the harmful effects of aflatoxin on human and animal health. It neither has legal framework for the management of aflatoxins nor kit for its rapid detection. On its part, Uganda has recommended aflatoxin control practices in place for the whole value chain, particularly for grains and beverages but the challenge remains on implementation.
Presenting the country's situation, Mr Alex Bambona, Head of Food and Nutrition in Uganda said that cleaning, sorting and grading facilities have been established in some regional stores, adding that some private processers/grain traders especially those in export and regional trade have established cleaning, sorting and grading facilities crucial in aflatoxin control.
"Maize, cassava, rice and beans targeted for special infrastructure development as part of regional trade strengthening. Target is to formalize the bulk of trade in these products," he said. He noted that regional grain stores/silos were currently being built in all major producing districts as part of the food security reserve system.
Uganda also has institutions dealing with aflatoxin control and food control including National Food Advisory Committee, National Codex Committee and National Sanitary and Phytosanitary Committee among others. Mr Bambona said the Uganda Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has developed standards for most grain products which have been harmonized in the EAC region.
"State of the art testing facilities is now available at UNBS Chemistry laboratory and there are laboratory analysts trained in undertaking testing of aflatoxin," he said. Pointing out some of the challenges, Mr Bambona said a food safety regulatory authority is not yet in place, adding that simple cheap methods for fast detection of aflatoxins, in grain, are still limited and costly.
"Organized trade systems for produce are still inadequate since the collapse of cooperatives in the country. Guidelines for safe handling of grain at different stages of the value chain are still not widely used among the farming communities," he said.
He emphasized massive sensitization on aflatoxin prevalence in grain and how to abate it countrywide is required. Rwanda on its part has put in place a post harvest handling and storage task force with responsibilities of contributing to the prevention and reduction of aflatoxins.
The facilities are also aimed at ensuring food security in the country, reduce the post harvest losses from 23 per cent to 5 per cent for maize and other staples, training of farmers on preventing yield losses such as on appropriate drying before storage.
The country has put in place model storage facilities (Metallic Silos, warehouses), construction of drying grounds for different crops and distribution of post harvest tools and equipment to farmers. "The constructed warehouses, metallic silos, and drying grounds have increased the capacity of storage facilities to 137,700 MT," said a presenter from the country.
He added that Rwanda Bureau of Standards has a well equipped laboratory for analysis in order to prevent and control the contaminated products in Rwandan market. It was also noted further that post harvest handling and storage task force have acquired equipment to test moisture content, and aflatoxin and that data on aflatoxin contamination are being collected on maize from different parts of the country.
Rwanda has gaps on the information on the current situation of aflatoxin, capacity building in Aflatoxin detection, prevention and control also has limited equipment for rapid detection. In Kenya previous food surveys suggest that aflatoxin contamination of homegrown maize is pervasive, particularly in the Eastern region.
"This results in both chronic exposure that can lead to long-term health effects as well as acute exposure that can result in the recurrent outbreaks," said Mr Robert Kilonzo from the Kenyan Ministry of Agriculture. Mr Kilonzo noted that in Kenya aflatoxin poisoning has been associated with consumption of maize stored under damp conditions.
The 2004 aflatoxin-poisoning outbreak in Kenya is said to be the largest and most severe documented worldwide. The outbreak covered more than seven districts and resulted in 317 case-patients and 125 deaths. Kenya has a National Food Safety Coordinating Committee (NFSCC) under the chairmanship of State Department of Agriculture and a Secretariat of Ministry of Health.
Members in the committee include, Directorate of Veterinary Services, State Department of Livestock Production, State Department of Fisheries, Kenya Bureau of Standards, Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services (KEPHIS) and the National Public Health Laboratory Services (NPHLS) among others.
The fact that countries in the region lie on the equator, they are also prone to aflatoxin, which, according to experts, is not only posing a huge threat to food security but is also a hindrance to market opportunities. Countries were represented by various officials mainly from ministries dealing with agriculture.
Papers presented showed various efforts done to address the matter, though some countries admitted that no research had been done so far to establish the magnitude of the problem. Aflatoxins are toxic metabolites produced by fungal species during their growth under favourable conditions of temperature and moisture.
The main cereals affected are maize, sorghum, rice and wheat and other crops like groundnuts and cassava. Scientists have associated aflatoxin with liver diseases and cancer to both humans and animals. Statistics show that in Tanzania cassava and maize production stand at between 4.2million and 6.2million tonnes.
Cashew remained the most important crop, accounting for 128million US dollars in exports by 2011, maize and groundnuts accounted for 8 and 2million US dollars, respectively.
Presenting a paper on behalf of the government of Tanzania, the Senior Fisheries Officer, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock Development, Mr Koddy Melkizedeck said that maize accounts for 33 per cent of the calorific value per capita while the rest remains to other food crops such as cassava and other grains posing a risk of aflatoxin contamination and putting the country's population at risk.
"We are therefore offering trainings to stakeholders (farmers, traders, animal and produce inspectors), registration of storage houses processing establishments, inspection to storage structures and lab tests," he said.
He also noted that institutions have been put in place that ensure quality and food security including the Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives, Tanzania Foods and Drugs Authority, Tanzania Bureau of Standards and Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Development.
"Various laboratory facilities have been put in place in various areas and research institutes as well as higher learning institutions," he said. He added, however, that the undertaking was faced by various challenges including in adequate capacity, facilities and skilled personnel.
"Coordination between agencies and ways of disposing of highly contaminated materials (heavy microbial load) also remains a challenge," he said. Lack of depth research for aflatoxin control, inefficient monitoring, surveillance and cost-effective measures as well as lack of awareness on aflatoxin prevalence and negative impacts is other challenges that need to be addressed.
Presenting a paper on the Burundian situation, a representative from Burundian government said aflatoxin is an area that needs to be studied, adding that the country has no data in place concerning the magnitude of the problem. "Knowledge on aflatoxins in Burundi is limited.
There are no baseline on the incidences and prevalence on aflatoxins," he said. He noted, however, that plans were underway to start sampling and establishing the baseline through the Burundi National Agricultural Research Institute (ISABU) in collaboration with APPEAR project and IITA.
"The Burundi Bureau of Standards and quality control ensures institutional coordination mechanism formed of a network of 14 laboratories. Similarly, it has set standards on corn and wheat flours, compound flours, peanuts, whole grain cereals, milk, butter and cheese," he noted.
The country has no initiatives or programmes on aflatoxin and the public is not sensitised about the harmful effects of aflatoxin on human and animal health. It neither has legal framework for the management of aflatoxins nor kit for its rapid detection. On its part, Uganda has recommended aflatoxin control practices in place for the whole value chain, particularly for grains and beverages but the challenge remains on implementation.
Presenting the country's situation, Mr Alex Bambona, Head of Food and Nutrition in Uganda said that cleaning, sorting and grading facilities have been established in some regional stores, adding that some private processers/grain traders especially those in export and regional trade have established cleaning, sorting and grading facilities crucial in aflatoxin control.
"Maize, cassava, rice and beans targeted for special infrastructure development as part of regional trade strengthening. Target is to formalize the bulk of trade in these products," he said. He noted that regional grain stores/silos were currently being built in all major producing districts as part of the food security reserve system.
Uganda also has institutions dealing with aflatoxin control and food control including National Food Advisory Committee, National Codex Committee and National Sanitary and Phytosanitary Committee among others. Mr Bambona said the Uganda Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has developed standards for most grain products which have been harmonized in the EAC region.
"State of the art testing facilities is now available at UNBS Chemistry laboratory and there are laboratory analysts trained in undertaking testing of aflatoxin," he said. Pointing out some of the challenges, Mr Bambona said a food safety regulatory authority is not yet in place, adding that simple cheap methods for fast detection of aflatoxins, in grain, are still limited and costly.
"Organized trade systems for produce are still inadequate since the collapse of cooperatives in the country. Guidelines for safe handling of grain at different stages of the value chain are still not widely used among the farming communities," he said.
He emphasized massive sensitization on aflatoxin prevalence in grain and how to abate it countrywide is required. Rwanda on its part has put in place a post harvest handling and storage task force with responsibilities of contributing to the prevention and reduction of aflatoxins.
The facilities are also aimed at ensuring food security in the country, reduce the post harvest losses from 23 per cent to 5 per cent for maize and other staples, training of farmers on preventing yield losses such as on appropriate drying before storage.
The country has put in place model storage facilities (Metallic Silos, warehouses), construction of drying grounds for different crops and distribution of post harvest tools and equipment to farmers. "The constructed warehouses, metallic silos, and drying grounds have increased the capacity of storage facilities to 137,700 MT," said a presenter from the country.
He added that Rwanda Bureau of Standards has a well equipped laboratory for analysis in order to prevent and control the contaminated products in Rwandan market. It was also noted further that post harvest handling and storage task force have acquired equipment to test moisture content, and aflatoxin and that data on aflatoxin contamination are being collected on maize from different parts of the country.
Rwanda has gaps on the information on the current situation of aflatoxin, capacity building in Aflatoxin detection, prevention and control also has limited equipment for rapid detection. In Kenya previous food surveys suggest that aflatoxin contamination of homegrown maize is pervasive, particularly in the Eastern region.
"This results in both chronic exposure that can lead to long-term health effects as well as acute exposure that can result in the recurrent outbreaks," said Mr Robert Kilonzo from the Kenyan Ministry of Agriculture. Mr Kilonzo noted that in Kenya aflatoxin poisoning has been associated with consumption of maize stored under damp conditions.
The 2004 aflatoxin-poisoning outbreak in Kenya is said to be the largest and most severe documented worldwide. The outbreak covered more than seven districts and resulted in 317 case-patients and 125 deaths. Kenya has a National Food Safety Coordinating Committee (NFSCC) under the chairmanship of State Department of Agriculture and a Secretariat of Ministry of Health.
Members in the committee include, Directorate of Veterinary Services, State Department of Livestock Production, State Department of Fisheries, Kenya Bureau of Standards, Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services (KEPHIS) and the National Public Health Laboratory Services (NPHLS) among others.
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