Food Safety

Kenya regulatory authorities (Policy)

• Although Kenya lacks a defined and published policy on food safety as part of a wider National Food and Nutrition Policy, there exists food laws designed to protect the consumers.
• Food safety control agencies operate under the Ministries of
• Trade,
• Industrialization,
• Public Health and Sanitation,
• Livestock, Fisheries Development, and
• Agriculture.

Competent authorities

• The agencies include
• Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS),
• Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI),
• Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services (KEPHIS),
• Department of Public Health (DPH),
• Weights and Measures Department (WMD),
• Government Chemist’s Department,
• Department of Veterinary Services (DVS),
• Kenya Dairy Board (KDB), and
• Agriculture Food Authority (Horticultural Crops Directorate)

Food Safety Standards in Kenya

• Standards for food and agricultural products are developed by technical committees, numbering about 30, with their secretariats at KEBS.
• Food standards give specifications for the compositional requirements, microbial requirements, the tolerance limits for contaminants, packaging, labeling and the hygiene conditions necessary for manufacture of products.
• Kenyan standards are practically adopted from international ones, International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and Codex Alimentarius Commission – Codex (CAC), following the philosophy of World Trade Organization (WTO) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards (SPS) and Technical Barrier to Trade (TBT) agreements.

Compliance and Enforcement

• The Minister for Public Health and Sanitation is responsible for coordinating multiple agencies involved in food safety management through the Department of Public Health (DPH).
• The DPH safeguards the health of consumers through food safety and quality control, surveillance, prevention and control of food borne diseases/illnesses
• The Minister constitutes the boards under DPH that oversee the enforcement of the basic laws for food safety namely: Central Board of Health – (Food, Drugs and Chemical Substances Act, Chapter 254) , and, Public Health Standards Board – (Public Health Act, Chapter 242) .

Compliance and Enforcement

• The Ministry is also the secretariat of the National Food Safety Coordination Committee established to enhance coordination and minimize overlaps in the enforcement of food safety laws by the various agencies .
• Each agency operates independently to accomplish its mandate and complements the basic laws for food safety .
• The Public Health Act Chapter 242 empowers the Municipal and County councils to enforce food and environmental hygiene.
• Effective enforcement of food safety laws is necessary to minimize the frequency of food-borne diseases, social burdens of health care, enhance per capita revenues and productivity, food security, and, threats to tourism and foreign trade.

 The Food, Drugs and Substances Act, Chapter 254

Requirements

• Proprietor maintains a current list of all relevant Government requirements relating to Food safety of all products.
• The management is aware of and comply with all the requirements of such legislation.

The Food, Drugs and Substances Act, Chapter 254

Main offences

• Rendering food injurious to health.
• Sale/ possession of food that is:
• Injurious to health;
• Unfit for human consumption; and
• Contaminated.
• Sale of food of:
• Incorrect nature;
• Incorrect substance; and
• Poor quality.
• False/misleading description of food.