Board bans hawking of raw milk

By Michael Wesonga

The North Rift Dairy Board has banned hawking of raw milk and transportation in plastic container packages for consumer safety.

Regional Manager Pius Cheserek said the ban is meant to ensure safety of dairy products across the value through strict adherence to the processing code.

Mr. Cheserek urged all transporters, milk bar vendors and processors to ensure they are licensed to avoid a clash with law enforcement agencies.

“We want to avoid a situation where milk is transported through plastics that have previously handled corrosive and toxic substances like pesticides and detergents whose residues are seeped into the milk while washing the containers threatening consumer safety,” he said.

He instead advised small vendors to pool their small quantities together for transportation through the specified aluminum cans that are easily washable and non-corrosive.

“Raw milk must be boiled before being dispensed to the consumer which can only be handled well by processors who pasteurize to avoid milk borne diseases.

He said there was a close connection between sell of raw milk to diseases like tuberculosis, brucella, typhoid among others increasingly reported at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret though they do not have clear statistics.

Cheserek said they had partnered with the Public Health and Agriculture Ministries, the County government and Kenya Bureau of Standards for proper implementation of the ban.

The board has also banned transportation of the product via public service transport owing to the sensitivity.

“We are also discouraging adulteration of the product by adding water and other substances to increase its volume for increased earnings and have heightened surveillance to crack on the same,” he stated.

Section 131 in Part 11 of the Public Health Act partly provides that no person shall collect, prepare, manufacture, keep, transmit or expose for sale any foodstuffs without taking adequate measures to guard against or prevent any infection or contamination thereof.

According to him, Eldoret town consumes an estimated 15, 000 liters a day, one that has remained constant for the past two years.

The Dairy Act, Cap 336 stipulate that no person shall sell for any purpose whatsoever milk which contains less than 3.3 percent butter fat and 8.5 per cent solids not fat in number three of the clause on dairy industry regulations.

 “A person who sells milk of a lower standard than that specified by these Regulations shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding ten thousand shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or to both.”

The dairy sector is also guided by The Food, Drugs and Chemical Substances Act, Cap 254 and The Standard Act, Cap 496.