Cabinet approves Aflatoxin Policy to deal with contamination in food value chain

Cabinet has approved a policy framework for management and control of aflatoxin in the food value chain, Dr Kwaku Afriyie, Minister of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation, said on Wednesday.

The Policy, when fully implemented, would help reduce Aflatoxin contamination in food and feed, which causes immeasurable damage to human and animal life.

Aflatoxin is a class of toxic compounds produced by certain moulds found in food and could cause liver damage and cancer when consumed by humans or animals.

Dr Afriyie, who announced this during a media briefing in Accra, said the roll-out of the policy would enable Ghana to increase her grain production locally, and export to the international markets.

“If you know the havoc aflatoxin is wreaking on our economic development……,do you know why we are unable to export certain products?” the Minister queried.

The Minister said Ghana could not export grains to the European Union market and other foreign jurisdictions because of aflatoxin previously found in food exported.

On the management of plastic waste in the country, Dr Afriyie said, the Ministry was promoting the preventive approach to plastic management as a complement to the current financial incentive system.

As part of the new approach, the Minister said, rewards would be given to individuals and groups only when there was no plastics sighted in the assigned communities or location.

The Ministry, he said, was engaging with the private sector companies who were already into recycling of plastics to determine their capacity in terms of infrastructure and the appropriate financial support they would require for sustainable management of plastics.

Dr Afriyie said the Ministry would soon roll out the details of the new, “Preventive Model” for plastic waste management and urged the public to actively get involved when it came into force.

On electronic waste (e-Waste) management, he said, the Ministry was constructing an e-waste Handover Centre at Ghana Atomic Energy Commission and expected to be completed in August, this year.

There were ongoing efforts for the selection of e-waste collection and holding centres at Ashaiman, New Juabeng North, Kpone-Katamanso, Suame, Offinso, Temale and Bolgatanga.

“E-waste Communication Strategy has been developed and it will help in the collection of levies on imported electronic equipment,” Dr Afriyie stated.