KVA asks State to ban use of preservatives in all meat outlets

The Kenya Veterinary Association (KVA) now wants the government to ban the use of preservatives in all meat outlets with immediate effect.

The association noted that uncontrolled use of preservatives in meat had become the norm and was practice in many outlets noting that this posed a major health threat to consumers.

This comes a day after one of the media stations exposed that supermarkets were using Sodium meta-bisulphite to preserve their meat.

The veterinary association noted that use of the chemical was allowed under Food, Drugs and Chemical Substances Act CAP 254 but its use had been abused.

According to the KVA national chairman Dr Samuel Kahariri, unhygienic handling of meat and uncontrolled use of veterinary medicines in food animals was on the rise posing a great danger to the human health.

He noted that though chemical preservatives were recognized for use under the Kenyan law, there were not set guidelines on their use.

“As a result the preservatives exceed the Maximum Residue Limit when used thus rendering the meat unfit for human consumption and the government should ban its use,” he said.