By Chinoyi Chipulu
The Ministry of Health (MoH) has confirmed that 400 dogs have died in the last month due to suspected Aflatoxin poisoning detected in maize meal and dog feed.
And Minister of Health Elijah Muchima has disclosed that the Ministry and other stakeholders conducted sampling of 10 milling companies with 25 samples collected and 13 samples out of 25 tested positive for Aflatoxin levels exceeding standards.
Dr Muchima said these toxins posed severe health risks to both humans and animals.
Speaking during a press briefing yesterday, Dr Muchima said in humans, the toxins could cause liver diseases, immune system suppression and other chronic health issues.
He said his Ministry and other stakeholders sampled the maize and animal feed because many milling companies produced products for both humans and animals.
“It is with great concern that I am addressing the nation regarding detection of eleven aflatoxin in the Zambian market. An alarming number of dogs have died in the past, in the last month, due to suspected contaminated feed thereby, raising significant concerns about the safety of our food supply,” he said.
Dr Muchima said postmortem examinations which were conducted on the dogs confirmed the presence of aflatoxin and corroborated with laboratory finding.
“In response to this, the following immediate seizure notices have been issued to the affected companies to prevent further sale of contaminated products. All affected batches of maize meal have been recalled from the markets and sampling efforts have been extended to other parts of the country to prevent further contamination of the food supply chain,” he said.
And Dr Muchima said although the country had not recorded any confirmed Mpox case, government had heightened surveillance.
“We have a continuous plan for Mpox, ensuring that we can respond swiftly should cases arise within our borders. We are actively building capacity through training district teams both in person and virtually to enhance their ability to manage cases effectively,” he said.
Dr Muchima also said surveillance at all points of entries like airports, borders crossings and bus stations had been intensified.
“The country already has the capacity text for Mpox through the Zambia National Public Health reference laboratory,” he said.
Muchima said so far the country had tested 24 Mpox samples and they all came out negative.
“Ministry of Health will launch a national awareness public campaign to educate citizens about the disease, its symptoms and preventive measures,” he said.
Dr Muchima said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would issue travel advisories to residents who wish to visit countries which had recorded an outbreak of the disease.
