Animal health experts have raised concern over the safety of animal products in the Kenyan market as the sector lacks a functional board to regulate medicine being used in their treatment.
Under their umbrella body Animal Health Technicians and Technologists Association of Kenya (AHTTAK), animal health specialists who met in Nakuru warned that the products in the Kenyan market may not be safe for human consumption.
AHTTAK Legal Affairs Committee chair Oreste Karanja pointed out that the ="https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/farmkenya/article/2001314086/we-will-deal-ruthlessly-with-quacks-vets-boss">country has not had a functional Veterinary< Medicine Directorate (VMD) Board for the past year.
“Since last year the board has not been functional despite its critical role on animal health and by extension that of our people who consume animal products at a large scale daily,” said Karanja.
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The directorate which was inaugurated in December 2017 had its roles previously under the Ministry of Health’s Pharmacy and Poisons Board which also regulates human medicine.
The directorate is tasked with regulating manufacture, importation, exportation, registration, distribution, prescription and dispensing of veterinary medicines and other animal health products.
AHTTAK has now warned that lack of the board has opened an avenue for rogue traders to exploit farmers with ineffective and harmful medicine that has residual effect in animal products.
“We already have manufacturers, importers and distributors taking advantage of wrangles at the ="https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/farmkenya/article/2001382632/impact-and-lessons-from-covid-19-pandemic-a-veterinary-perspective">Veterinary Medicine Directorate Board< to flood the country with fake and poor quality drugs,” said Oreste.
Oreste added that the absence of a regulator has seen veterinary drugs being sold and dispensed in open air markets, kiosks, groceries and hardware stores exposing Kenyans to health risks and economic losses.
The experts warned that this poses grave danger to consumers of foods of animal origin such as meat, milk and eggs with their recent study registering harmful residual levels of drugs, mostly antibiotics.
“Our recent studies established that between 7 per cent of milk samples collected on the markets around Nairobi had high levels of antibiotic residue. This needs to be urgently addressed,” said the association coordinator Calvin Ninga.
Ninga added that the association has continued to receive complaints from farmers on recurrence of diseases in their animals due to use of substandard medicines.
Lydia Abiri, a member of the association, called on Kenyans to be vigilant while sourcing veterinary medicines to avert losses attributed to challenges in regulation of the sector.
“We are warning ="https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/farmkenya/article/2001367596/taking-care-of-livestock-during-a-pandemic">Kenyan farmers not to buy veterinary< medicine from any outlet. Ensure the dealer is a reliable veterinary expert. In the current situation quacks are having a field day while anyone can prepare a concoction and pass it off as a drug,” said Abiri.
Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya on April 24 this year gazetted Josiah Machiki Mandieka, John Wilberforce Muchibi, James Muchini Mbaria and Douglas Gitonga as members of the Veterinary Medicine Directorate.
The Kenya Veterinary Board moved to court challenging their appointment claiming that this was done contrary to the law.
