By Jane Chanda
Zambia Institute of Environmental Health says the country’s focus on maize products in the wake of the aflatoxin contamination scare must be broadened to include other susceptible food products like groundnuts, cashew nuts, sorghum, and millet.
In an interview with Daily Revelation yesterday, Zambia Institute of Environmental Health president Titus Hakonde said the country might be controlling aflatoxins in only maize meal, but other products were also vulnerable to aflatoxin contamination.
Hakonde pointed out that aflatoxins occured naturally without human intervention, particularly when food items were dried at low temperatures, leading to insufficient drying and creating an environment conducive to aflatoxin growth.
“Aflatoxin contamination can happen at the household level, even in mealie meal stored at home,” Hakonde said.
He stressed the need for concerted efforts along the entire value chain, from farmers ensuring proper drying to millers, transporters, and consumers taking precautions to prevent moisture accumulation.
Hakonde highlighted the severe health implications of aflatoxin exposure, including liver damage, cancer, neurological development issues in children, and suppressed immune systems.
He urged heightened surveillance, monitoring, and awareness creation among farmers, millers, transporters, and consumers to ensure food safety and quality assurance.
“The government needs to prioritize decentralizing food and drugs laboratories across all provinces to facilitate timely testing and monitoring,” Hakonde said.
He noted that the current reliance on a single laboratory in Lusaka puts citizens at risk due to delayed testing and results.
Hakonde also underlined the importance of consumer awareness, saying, consumers had to make sure that if mealie meal was bought, it was kept dry at all times.
He encouraged consumers to take an active role in ensuring food safety.
Hakonde also talked about the need for vigilance at points of entry, stating that health inspectors and health officers needed to be on the lookout for contaminated products, even at borders.
He warned that imported products could also pose a risk if not properly inspected.
Hakonde added that addressing aflatoxin contamination required a collective effort, saying what had happened was a wake-up call to the government, millers, farmers, transporters, and consumers to work together to ensure consumer safety and quality assurance.
