The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) has suspended two other peanut butter products barely a week after suspending Nuteez due to having too much of the cancer-related aflatoxin content.
Food manufacturers Triclover — producer of Clovers Nuts Smooth and Clovers Nuts Chocolate brands — and Mother’s Nature have been instructed to discontinue their peanut butter production as they have been found to have exceeded the 10 parts per billion (ppb) required aflatoxin limit.
Clovers Nuts Smooth had aflatoxin level of 36.44 ppb, Clovers Nuts Chocolate hit 44.25 ppb while Mother Nature’s level of aflatoxin was 27.26 ppb.
Nuteez peanut butter’s aflatoxin levels were on preliminary reports from Nandi county found to contain 24.08 ppb of aflatoxin, but further tests from its manufacturing base in Ruiru revealed that it was at 25.13 ppb.
KEBS has therefore recalled the products and suspended their permit to use the standardization mark.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), large doses of aflatoxins lead to acute poisoning (aflatoxicosis) that can be life-threatening, usually through damage to the liver.
Long-term or chronic exposure to aflatoxins has several health consequences and may affect all organ systems, especially the liver and kidneys. It can also cause liver cancer.
Aflatoxin is a natural, poisonous product in crops (regularly improperly stored nuts, cassava, chili peppers, rice, sorghum, wheat, spices etc.)
While most countries adapt strict regulatory measures on food manufacturers, Tanzania has seemingly outdone itself through its Alfasafe TZ technology.
The technique is reported by The Citizen to have an ability to reduce aflatoxin levels by over 85 percent. It entails non-poisonous fungi exclusively invented for the type of fungi in Tanzania, and is applied when grains are still growing, taking the place of the poisonous aflatoxin fungi.
Admittedly a challenge for Kenya, don’t you think?