Kenya picked for new EU food safety training
Business Daily | 17 November 2010
Kenya picked for new EU food safety training
By GEORGE OMONDI
Fish, fresh produce and tea firms are set to benefit from a new European Union support meant to safeguard markets by meeting safety rules.
The project, whose delegation is in Nairobi, is run by EDES, an EU-funded trade programme that helps developing states to strengthen and adjust regulatory regimes to meet stringent quality demands of European markets.
“Kenya was picked as a test country in the region because of its long association and high volume of trade with EU,” Marie Josee, EDES’s head of information and communication, said in Nairobi on Wednesday.
EU regulations on food safety have undergone many tests with the latest farm-to-fork traceability demand, putting pressure on developing states to adjust their sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) control systems to match the European standards.
To Kenya, EDES programme comes as an assurance of the EU’s continued interest in its produce at a time anxiety is running high over the future of its trade relations with Kenya after the East African Community failed to sign a binding preferential trade pact on schedule.
“EU remains the most important destination where our products have enjoyed preferential taxes and exemptions through the Cotonou Agreement,” said Prof Japhet Micheni, Fisheries permanent secretary, said on Wednesday.
The programme is expected to review Kenya’s food production chains and propose technical and financial support for adjustments to ease access to EU market.
Apart from fish and horticulture, the programme also covers tea, coffee and livestock products.
“At the end of this delegation, we expect to have developed proposals for assisting the food and feeds industry in Kenya to become competitive in EU,” he said.
At least 80 per cent of the country’s horticultural produce and 70 per cent of fish are exported to the EU. Last year, Kenya generated Sh72 billion from horticulture, Sh3.5 billion from fish and Sh69 billion from tea. Prof Micheni said draft policy formulated recently will be developed into a strategic plan to boost compliance with quality standards once endorsed by sector players.
Rod Evans, a private consultant in horticulture, said upgrading the country’s quality compliance system will boost Kenya’s drive to expand its exports beyond the traditional EU stronghold.
“This programme will not only drive exports to EU but will build a general trust for Kenyan produce that can be used to penetrate other regional and international markets,” said Mr Evans.
Several government agencies are involved in regulating plant and animal quality standards. They include the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (Kephis), veterinary services and the Ministry of Fisheries.
Some of these departments have appealed for financial and technical assistance.
Livestock officials said export of products such as meat, milk, eggs, honey, mutton and honey was restricted to few markets whose quality benchmarks are not demanding.
Dedan Mungai, a fisheries official, said the country’s testing does not cover histamine, sodium meta bisulphate and veterinary residue.
He asked that players be trained to keep them abreast of what the industry requires. Mr Evans said government departments could also share facilities in addressing the crosscutting quality demands.
The regulators, he said, should begin by taking a national inventory of the local testing capacity and decide how to share the resources.
