Nairobians have been put on high alert following a sharp increase in the sale of uninspected chicken meat in food outlets in Nairobi and other major towns.
According to Director of Veterinary Services Obadiah Njagi, the meat is mainly sourced from the broiler chicken farmers who slaughter at their homesteads and distribute at hotels and other eateries contrary to the law.
“This is contrary to Meat Control Act Cap 356 of laws of Kenya which states that food animals should only be slaughtered in licensed slaughterhouses under the supervision of an inspecting officer,” the circular reads.
The cicular has been addressed to all county directors of veterinary services and copied to the Director General of Health and Livestock Development principal secretary.
“In addition, meat should only be transported in licensed meat containers accompanied with the requisite meat transport documents indicating the source slaughterhouse of the meat and the destination among other important details,” it adds.
This, Njagi said, exposes Kenyans to unhygienic meat and meat products which act as the source of the spread of harmful drug residues and other contaminants thereby endangering their health.
To stem this, he has called for heightened surveillance and close cooperation with other stakeholders.
“You should also work in close cooperation with other stakeholders in food safety including the law enforcement agencies to ensure perpetrators of these illegal activities are dealt with according to the law,” Njagi said.
