ZCSA Enhances Scope of Testing, Inspections to Cover Aflatoxins

Zambia Compulsory Standards Agency (ZCSA) says it has enhanced the scope of testing and inspections to cover aflatoxins on a continuous basis for both raw materials and finished products.

Speaking when he paid a courtesy call on Copperbelt Permanent Secretary Augustine Kasongo, Agency Board Chairperson, Ian Besa said this follows the recent detection of high levels of aflatoxin contamination in some batches of mealie meal.

Mr. Besa stated that the Agency has also enhanced public education interventions to mitigate misinformation on aflatoxin contamination and ultimately ensure that only safe products are available on the market.

“ZCSA, working with other state institutions, has implemented adequate measures to safeguard the health and safety of consumers following the detection of elevated aflatoxin levels in some batches of mealie meal and dog food. Non-compliant bags of mealie meal were seized, withdrawn from the market and destroyed for the purpose of protecting consumers.”

“The Agency wishes to emphasize that the issue of non-compliance on the levels of aflatoxins was specific to the identified mealie meal batches referred to above,” Mr. Besa stated.

He added that millers are now required to have a standing monitoring program for aflatoxins internally on both raw materials and finished products, and that records for this activity should be provided on request.

Mr. Besa reiterated that all mealie meal brands currently on the market have been certified safe including those that had the affected batches withdrawn from the market and destroyed.

And Mr. Besa has urged farmers to buy fertilizer from recognised, regulated and reputable outlets or distributors to be assured of a good crop yield,  as the 2024/2025 farming season approaches.

He encouraged farmers to be quality conscious and ensure that they have adequate information on the fertilizer they are buying or using.

“Consumers must also report to ZCSA any suspicious fertilizer, including acts such as illegal mixing of fertilizer with other materials or chemicals by unscrupulous individuals.”

“This will help them to avoid buying unsafe or inappropriate fertilizer that may cause poor crop yields or pose a risk to their health and safety,” he added.

Meanwhile, Copperbel Permanent Secretary Augustine Kasongo encouraged ZCSA to carryout more sensitization programmes on its mandate through radio programs, in order for people to know and understand the Agency’s mandate.

“If people have that information especially through radio programs in vernacular, and you speak to the issue of fertilizer, so that people must know that if they are scammed they have got where to report.”

“You have rightly said that you have representation in all the districts in the country so if only you could up your game in terms of selling the Agency to the public, I think that would do a lot of justice to the citizens of this country. A lot of our people do not know where to report,” Mr. Kasongo stated.

ZCSA regulates 61 products which are covered by compulsory standards and these include food products, beverages, chemical products, fertilizer, fuel, cement, household electrical appliances and used textile products, among others.