Tanzania inspects sugar on the shelves, health minister says

Dar es Salaam. Authorities in Tanzania are conducting a safety audit on sugar sold in the local market following fears that contraband sugar may have found its way in.

Health minister Ummy Mwalimu confirmed Thursday that an inspection exercise was ongoing to ascertain the quality of the commodity on the shelves.

The audit comes in the wake of reports in Kenya that police had impounded hundreds of tonnes of imported sugar found to be laced with mercury and copper particles.

Fear is likely to mount as sugar manufacturers in Tanzania also on Thursday suggested at a press conference that thousands of tonnes of the commodity may have been imported into the country illegally.

Through the association of sugar importers, they said they have failed to sell up to 80,000 tonnes of brown sugar which is stranded in the warehouses due to flooding of the market with illegal imports. The manufacturers warned that unscrupulous traders were repackaging both industrial sugar and smuggled sugar for domestic use to avoid detection by authorities.

But is the development in Kenya that may be the most scaring, considering that sugar import cartels stride the boarder and have been blamed for smuggling of cheap sugar into the East Africa Community region.

A full-fledged investigation is underway in Kenya where several people have been arrested with contraband sugar that their Interior minister Fred Matiang’i and the director of criminal investigations George Kinoti have said was found to contain mercury and copper.

Ms Mwalimu said following what was happening in the neighbouring country, she had directed Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority (TFDA) to conduct an investigation about the safety of the sugar on sale in Tanzania.

“But I want to assure Tanzanians that there is no cause for alarm……we are taking initiative and I have ordered an investigation to ascertain the quality of sugar in our market,” said Ms Mwalimu. The minister said so far there was no information about contaminated sugar in the market.

She spoke on Thursday at an event to inspect the construction of a modern TFDA laboratory in Mwanza region.

According to the minister, results from the investigation will be released in a week’s time.

When contacted, the TFDA Spokesperson Ms Gaudencia Simwanza confirmed an audit was indeed on but declined to give any further details about where the exercise was being carried.

“Upon accomplishment of the task, the minister herself will announce the findings, but the authority is continuing with the audit exercise as it is required,” she told The Citizen in a telephone interview Friday.

Estimates show that Tanzania currently produces an average of 300,000 tonnes of sugar per year with a demand of 590,000 tonnes per year.

Domestic consumption is around 420,000 tonnes while the remaining 170,000 tonnes is for industrial use. A deficit of domestic sugar of 130,000 tonnes is covered by imports.