TANZANIA – The Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) has called on dairy producers to certify their products to enhance their competitiveness within the East African Community (EAC) market.
According to Neema Mtemvu, TBS Public Relations Officer, products certified for quality by the standards organizations of EAC countries do not require further testing when crossing borders, facilitating smoother access to both domestic and foreign markets.
Speaking during National Milk Week in Mwanza, themed “Drink Safe Milk for Better Health and Sustainable Economy,” Mtemvu emphasized the importance of certification for dairy producers.
She noted that TBS’s participation in the event aimed to educate milk producers about the certification process, encouraging them to obtain quality marks for their products to ensure they can compete effectively locally and internationally.
“Dairy producers have been advised to confirm the quality of their products with TBS, enabling them to be reliable and withstand competition in the market,” Mtemvu stated.
She highlighted that TBS educates all producers, helping them achieve quality certification and thus improve their market reliability.
In related developments, the Tanzania Milk Board (TDB) has been tasked with addressing challenges in the dairy sector, including high milk prices and low domestic milk consumption.
Deputy Minister of Livestock and Fisheries Alexander Mnyeti, emphasized the need to make milk more affordable to meet the national goal of every Tanzanian drinking 200 liters per year.
He noted that the high cost of milk is a barrier for many Tanzanians and contributes to malnutrition and stunting among children.
Mnyeti also addressed the issue of packaging, which contributes to the high cost of milk, urging TDB to explore alternative packaging materials, such as paper, which could lower costs.
“We should start packaging in paper because we have many trees in Iringa and Sengerema. If we find good processors and factories to make the packaging, we can lower the milk price,” he stated.
Furthermore, the TDB has warned against consuming milk sold arbitrarily on the streets, arguing that such milk, often packaged in non-official plastic bottles, poses serious health risks as it is not subject to quality controls.
The Tanzania Agricultural Development Bank (TADB) Business Development Officer, Mr. Edmund Mariki, emphasized that industrially processed milk is safer for consumption as it undergoes rigorous quality checks.
Mariki pointed out that milk processed in factories is tested for safety and quality before reaching consumers.
“When milk goes through factories, it is safer because they determine the quality before sending it to the consumer. If it has problems, it cannot be stored to be sent to the consumer,” he explained.
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