Efforts to reduce mycotoxin contamination in staple crops have received a much-needed boost with the launch of a well-equipped modern laboratory to conduct research on the toxins and ground breaking for the construction a modular, small-scale plant to manufacture Aflasafe KE01—a biopesticide to control aflatoxin at the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) center, Katumani in Machakos County, Kenya.
The two events were presided over by Felix K. Koskei, the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Development who was accompanied by the Principal Secretary, State Department of Agriculture, Sicily Kariuki and Acting Deputy Director General, KALRO, Dr Joseph Mureithi. Other dignitaries present included representatives from Machakos and Makueni county governments, and partners including KALRO, World Bank, USAID, United States Department of Agriculture-Agriculture Research Services (USDA-ARS), Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF), senior government officials, private sector representatives and farmers.
The delegation from IITA was led by DG Nteranya Sanginga, R4D Director for Eastern Africa Victor Manyong, Country Representative of Kenya, Leena Tripathi, and scientists working on mycotoxins including Ranajit B andyopadhyay, Charity Mutegi, and Lawrence Kaptoge.
Speaking at the event, Koskei noted that mycotoxins and especially aflatoxins, one of the most prevalent mycotoxins in the region, were a major barrier to Kenya’s efforts to secure food for its people and to regional and international trade. He hailed aflasafe KE01 as a sustainable technology which had demonstrated its effectiveness in reducing aflatoxin contamination by up to 98%, and the modular facility. The facility will use a novel manufacturing process to enable farmers to access the biopesticide to reduce aflatoxin in their fields. This, he said, will make the food of millions of people in the region safer to eat and enable the maize value chain to be more profitable.
The modular plant is the first of its kind in Africa and the second for manufacturing aflasafe after the one at IITA-Ibadan in Nigeria.
“The ‘war’ against aflatoxins cannot be won without employing new technologies. It is therefore gratifying that KALRO together with partners such as IITA, USDA-ARS, AATF, and ACDI-VOCA, have stepped up their research efforts and developed this sustainable solution to the problem,” he said.
Principal Agriculture Secretary Kariuki said the two facilities marked a major milestone in the efforts to fight against aflatoxins in the region. She said every year, Kenya spends millions of shillings to destroy maize contaminated with aflatoxins in environmentally sustainable ways. This is money that would be put into better use if this problem had been managed, she added.
Speaking at the event, Dr Manyong reported that aflatoxins negatively affect human health, farm productivity and profitability, regional trade, incomes of millions of small-holder farmers and also the reputation of African products in the global markets.
He further noted that aflatoxin was a silent killer with Kenya being the only country in the world where many lives had been lost due to the toxin, and therefore it needed to be tackled to ensure the region was food secure.
“Aflasafe KE01 is now available as a sustainable solution for making food safe. The biopesticide has been able to reduce aflatoxin contamination by up to 90% and in areas such as Makueni, Hola, and Bura where the maize was found to have more than 100 times the acceptable levels of aflatoxins by up to 99%,” he said.
KALRO through its Acting Deputy Director General, Joseph Mureithi, promised to run the two facilities professionally not only for the benefit of Kenya but for the whole region and to also build the capacity of the staff in the region through the laboratory.
The construction of the regional mycotoxins laboratory was supported by the World Bank which rehabilitated an existing building at the Katumani center while the equipment was provided by USAID through the Aflatoxin Policy and Program for East Africa (APPEAR) project, and USDA-ARS. It will be used for surveillance and monitoring of aflatoxin contamination as well as for developing biocontrol agents for aflatoxin management in Kenya and the Eastern African region at large. The total investment for this laboratory facility amounted to US$170,000.
Aflasafe KE01, on the other h and, was developed in partnership with KALRO, IITA, USDA-ARS, AATF, ACDI/ VOCA and the National Irrigation Board (NIB). The partners are also behind the construction of the modular plant which will cost $800,000 and which will produce the biopesticide for the region. Currently the plant will be run by KALRO with technical backstopping from IITA but it is hoped it will eventually attract the private sector for wide-scale production and distribution of the product. Its construction is expected to take 12 months.
For more information, please contact:
Catherine Njuguna, c.njuguna@cgiar.org
About IITA, www.iita.org
IITA is one of the world’s leading research partners in finding solutions for hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. Its award-winning research for development (R4D) approach addresses the development needs of tropical countries. IITA works with partners to enhance crop quality and productivity, reduce producer and consumer risks, and generate wealth from agriculture. IITA is a nonprofit organization founded in 1967 and governed by a Board of Trustees. IITA works on the following crops: cowpea, soybean, banana/plantain, yam, cassava, and maize. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global agriculture research partnership for a food secure future.
Contributed by
Recent stories