The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) has refuted claims that there are plans to sell contaminated sugar to Kenyans.
In an official notice dated July 31, the bureau assured Kenyans that such allegations were malicious, as it takes its responsibility of testing all foods consumed by Kenyans seriously before releasing it to the market.
''KEBS would like to dispel these allegations and ascertain that both locally produced and imported sugar undergo mandatory and rigorous inspection, testing, and certification before release to the market,'' the Bureau stated.
These clarifications and assurances follow allegations by the United Opposition, led by Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka, that 25,000 tonnes of sugar unfit for human consumption were about to enter the Kenyan market.
In a press release on Thursday, Kalonzo Musyoka claimed that the sugar, which had docked at the Port of Mombasa, was already on its way to Western Kenya to be repackaged and sold to Kenyans.
However, the KEBS has denied these allegations, assuring that no contaminated sugar had been cleared for release into the Kenyan market.
KEBS guaranteed Kenyans that both locally produced and imported sugar undergo rigorous checks before they can be released to the market for human consumption.
The bureau advised Kenyans to disregard the alarming information, now circulating on social media and other platforms, as it remains committed to protecting what they consume.
Musyoka also weighed in on the move by the Agriculture Ministry to import 500,000 metric tonnes of Grade 1 white milled rice. The opposition criticized the move, accusing the government of locking out rice farmers.
Speaking after the move received heavy-weight criticism, also from farmers who decried a witch-hunt on their businesses, Agriculture CS Mutahi Kagwe clarified that the government's decision to import rice is due to Kenya’s continued shortfall in local production. Kenya has long relied on imports to bridge the gap in demand.
The CS assured the farmers that the importation would not in any way affect their produce or sales.
"In the last three years, for example, we have imported an average of over 700,000 metric tonnes of rice per year. We only produce about 20 per cent in Mwea and in other parts of our nation of our rice intake, the rest of it, year in year out, is imported rice," Kagwe said.
"I don't understand why there was this confusion about whether we are importing rice so we can kill the local industry. It is the same for wheat, we import 90 per cent of wheat but still ensure we take care of local farmers," the CS continued.
The CS has assured rice farmers that they will buy all the rice in the granaries in the whole country, encouraging the farmers not to panic over the importation.
