.
EXISTING CODES OF PRACTICE AND
COMMODITIES STANDARDS
ASSESSMENT FOR AFLATOXIN WORKSHOP
MAYFAIR PLAZA HOTEL
3rd and 4th December, 2012
PRESENTER: THERESIA HUBERT KESSY
TANZANIA BUREAU OF STANDARDS
. INTRODUCTION
 Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) is
Tanzania’s sole standards body established by
Act No. 3 of 1975 and subsequently amended
by Act No. 1 of 1977.
 The Standards Act No. 3 was later repealed
and replaced by the Standards Act No. 2 of
2009.
 Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) is under
the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
INTRO……
The main functions of TBS
 Formulation and promulgation of Tanzania standards
in all sectors of the country’s economy.
 Undertake the testing of product samples drawn by
providing facilities for the examination and testing .
 Implement the promulgated standards through third party
Certification Schemes i.e approve, register and control the
use of “standard mark”
 To undertake calibration of industrial and commercial
measuring equipment and instruments in the areas of mass,
length, volume, energy, temperature
INTRO……
 To promote standardization and quality
assurance services in industry and commerce
through training.
 Represents Tanzania in International,
regional Standards bodies etc ( ISO , CODEX,
EAC,ARSO)
INTR……
SAFE FOOD
 Ensuring the safety of food has been a major
concern at international and national level over
the last few years.
 Food contamination concern involves physical,
microbiological and chemical hazards.
 Among chemical hazards, the contamination of
food and feed by aflatoxin , fishery products by
phycotoxins and edible plant species by their plant
toxins have been characterised as significant
sources of food-borne illnesses (WHO)
INTR……
 Among the three categories of natural
toxins, most attention has been directed to
aflatoxins to date .
 Countries have established standards and
regulations on aflatoxin in food and feed to
safeguard the health of humans after the
knowledge that it can have serious effects on
humans and animals.
AFLATOXIN CONTROL THROUGH
STANDARDIZATION
 Response towards food safety challenges
has focused on food standardisation.
 Tanzania Standards and Codes of Practice
set by TBS are the main supporting
documents useful for the control of
Aflatoxins in Foods and feed.
 All Tanzania food Standards have a section
for chemical contaminants and aflatoxins are
stated or specified where relevant.
Aflatoxin Limits Specifiedin
National standards
 Due to lack of reliable aflatoxin levels of foods
consumed locally; TBS adopts/adapts existing and
relevant Codex Codes of Practice and standards for
Prevention and Elimination of aflatoxins.
 All Tanzania new and revised food standards have
the maximum limits for Aflatoxins as :
- Total Aflatoxins – 10 mg/kg (ppb)
- Aflatoxin B1
- 5 mg/kg (ppb)
(with exception of baby foods :
1 mg/kg (ppb )
5 mg/kg (ppb total &
Tanzania Standards with specifications for Aflatoxin
 TBS, has set standards for maximum aflatoxin
concentrations for several aflatoxin-susceptible
products:
i) Staple foods:
- Cereals and their products( maize, wheat ,sorghum and millet ( grains& flours)
- Roots, tubers and their products ( cassava and cassava flour and blended cassava four,
cassava chips
- pulses& legumes ( soya ,cow pea, beans ,pigeon pea )
ii) Oil seeds ( groundnuts, sesame seeds, cashew nuts)
iii) Meat and meat products-(under revision)
iv) Milk and milk products ( under revision)
v) Infant foods ( cereal based infant and young children under revision )
vi) Animal and poultry feeds ( under revision)
Tanzania Standards with specifications for
Aflatoxins
Standard code
Title
Aflatoxin limits
TZS 328:
Maize Flour – Specification
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins.
TZS 438:
TZS 437:
Maize Grain - Specification
Wheat Grains- Specification
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins.
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
TZS 439:
Wheat flour- specificatin
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
TZS 765:
Sorghum Flour-Specification
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
Soya Beans -Specification
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
Pearl millet/ bulbrush flour- SPec
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
TZS 1083
TZS 874
Tanzania Standards…….
TZS 688:
Finger millet flour-Specifiation
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins.
TZS 466:
Cassava Flour-Specification
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
.
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
TZS 592:
Milled Rice - Specification
TZS 465:
Edible cassava chips Specification
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
TZS 740:
2003 Groundnuts (peanuts) –
Specification
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
TZS 180 :
Processed cereal – Based weaning
foods – Specification
1 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
5 µg for total aflatoxins
TZS 741:
Simsim (sesame) seeds –
Specification
5 µg/kg (ppb) for aflatoxin B1 and
10µg for total aflatoxins
CHALLENGES
 Available Aflatoxin standards do to address a large share of
foods consumed by Tanzanian people ( unpackaged
indigenous/local foods in the market)
 Inadequate collection of analyzed nationally representative
data confirmed as quantitative findings from research to
be referred in setting national standards for aflatoxins.
 TBS laboratory does no not have capacity to conduct
aflatoxin testing as one among the food safety control
institutions.
 Inadequate awareness of aflatoxin standards in the food
chain( e.g farmers
WAY FORWARD
 TBS to upgrade standards and codes to reflect ranges of
consumption (basing on local /indigenous consumption
e .g staple foods and nuts) .
 TBS to develop national standards that account for
consumption patterns building on the Codex
Alimentarius, consistent with the World Trade
Organization Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement.
 Enforcement of aflatoxin standards in aflatoxinsusceptible products.
 Collaboration of stakeholders on aflatoxin control and
setting up a policy
.