The Uganda Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has refuted claims that the sugar which was recently banned in Kenya has found its way on the Ugandan market.
“UNBS would like to reassure the public that, based on the tests done so far, the current sugar on the market is safe for human consumption,” reads part of Friday’s statement.
The New Vision of on Friday ran a headline: “Banned Kenya Sugar Sneaked into Uganda”, causing fear among consumers.
“Our investigations have since established that the sugar reported belongs to Kakira Sugar, a local manufacturer certified by UNBS, contrary to the media reports that it had illegally been imported into the country,” the statement further read.
According to the statement, UNBS has instituted consumer protection measures to ensure that contaminated such sugar is not imported into the country. And that it has since June 2018 cleared 437 consignments of imported sugar and samples tested were found to comply with the required national standards.
“In addition, the UNBS market surveillance team randomly picked over 120 samples from Kampala, and border towns of Mbale, Busia, Malaba, Tororo, which were taken to UNBS laboratories for further testing and analysis,” read the statement.
From the laboratory analyses, it was established that all the samples tested did not contain heavy metals such as copper, lead, mercury that may have adverse effects on human health, it added.
In mid-June, an analysis carried out on samples of the 1,400 bags of illegal sugar seized by the Kenyan police in different operations, revealed that some of the sugar contained contaminated water insoluble matter.