KENYA – The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) has made a troubling revelation that Kenyans might be consuming cooking oil deemed unfit for human consumption.
Documents indicate that the Kenya National Trading Corporation (KNTC) contracted suppliers who imported edible oil between May 2023 and November 2023 to stabilize prices. Four companies were contracted to import goods worth KSh 6 billion.
The imported edible oil was accompanied by a certificate of conformity to Kenyan standards. KEBS’s survey revealed that 73 consignments of edible cooking oil from Malaysia, each with a Certificate of Conformity (CoC), entered the country.
However, out of the whole consignment, 44 consignments were approved in the KEBS Import Management System (KIMS), while 23 consignments have yet to be declared or entered by the importer (clearing agent) to Customs.
Tests conducted on eight samples from the 44 cleared consignments showed that they failed to meet local quality standards. This equates to 5.88 million liters of the total 21 million liters of edible oil imported into the country.
KEBS Managing Director Esther Ngari stated, “Samples of edible oil were drawn from the consignments for testing against the requirements of KS EAS 769:2019, the Kenya standard specification for fortified edible oils and fats.”
“Out of the eight sampled consignments, seven failed in vitamin A, while one consignment failed in both vitamin A and insoluble impurities.”
Ngari informed the Senate that KEBS had requested the KNTC to either destroy or return the substandard oil.
However, the remaining 36 consignments, totaling 32 million liters, that were still in the submission stage and awaiting KEBS approval, are reportedly missing from the KNTC warehouse. There is speculation that they may have been released into the market, according to Capital News.
Ngari highlighted that KEBS lacks the authority to prevent the sale of these 36 consignments. Fortifying cooking oil with vitamin A is a public health strategy aimed at addressing vitamin A deficiency, which is a significant issue in many developing countries.
Since cooking oil is a staple in many diets and is used in large quantities, fortifying it with vitamin A helps ensure that a wide segment of the population receives this essential nutrient through a commonly consumed product.
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