The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) has approved 28 new standards for agro-processing and agriculture products

These standards include adoption of Codex standard primed to manage food allergen, corrigenda on dried peaches as well as grading of meat and poultry products.

The standard requires the declaration of allergen status on products that commonly cause allergic reactions.

“By unveiling the precautionary allergen labeling on packaging, KEBS aims to effectively regulate the forms used by various food industries which often has been inconsistent and may over time diminish the value of such advisory to consumers,” said  Bernard Njiraini, Managing Director, Kenya Bureau of Standards.

The newly approved standards aim to familiarize consumers with food allergens as they diet and address many questions regarding their preferred food products hitching with medical and safety considerations.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has propelled us into an era where medicine is increasingly practiced via online platforms, highlighting the need for standardized food allergen ladder approaches for successful and safe introduction of food allergens,” added Njiraini

According to Njiraini, the approved standards will help to improve governance, fix inconsistent usage of precautionary allergen labelling which will result in communicating risks to consumers to make informed choices when purchasing food products.