The Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has urged suppliers, school operators and parents to be vigilant on the quality of supplies as learners prepare to go back to school.
These supplies include both food and nonfood items consumed in schools, including scholastic materials.
In a statement, the UNBS executive director, David Livingstone Ebiru, encouraged sourcing of such supplies from UNBS certified companies/service providers to ensure their safety, quality and value for money.
The major challenge with food supplies in schools according to Ebiru is their exposure to contamination during the processes of harvesting, storage, transportation, processing, packaging and handling.
Such contaminants include dirt, stones, heavy metals, moisture, moulds and other foreign matter, including aflatoxin which causes disease.
The common food supplies consumed in schools include maize flour, rice, beans, milk, bread, drinking water, snacks, sanitary pads, toilet paper, detergents, garments and scholastic materials/stationery which must all comply with the relevant quality standards.
He urged whoever buys these supplies to ensure that they are certified by the bureau and bear a quality mark (Q-Mark).
He said products must be properly packaged and labelled, indicating the brand name, date of manufacture, expiry date/ sell by date, name of manufacturer, address of manufacturer, storage instructions, instructions for use, size and net weight of the products.
He said the list of UNBS certified companies and service providers for the stated products is available on the bureau’s website.
Companies seeking UNBS Certification for their Products are also advised to apply online provided the applicant has a valid email address, Tax Identification Number (TIN), product labels/marking, business registration certificate and the process flow chart describing the production process.
UNBS is a government agency responsible for the development, promotion and enforcement of national standards in order to protect the health and safety of the public and the environment against harmful and sub-standard products; as well as promoting fair trade practices and competition.