DODOMA: THE Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) has destroyed substandard food and cosmetic products worth 17.8m/-, citing toxic ingredients and tampered expiry dates.
TBS Quality Control Officer Francis Moshy said that Dodoma on Tuesday the destroyed items included expired food products, goods with toxic components and those with altered expiry dates.
“Goods with toxic ingredients pose a serious danger to human health, potentially causing both short-term and long-term effects such as organ damage, reproductive issues and cancer,” he said.
Mr Moshy said that the presence of expired products and those containing toxic ingredients negatively impacts both the nation’s economy and consumers’ health.
The items, weighing 2,146.35 kilogrammes, were impounded from councils in Dodoma, Singida and Tabora regions, which comprise the TBS Central Zone.
“This follows inspections conducted by TBS officials in shops, warehouses, bars, hotels and storage facilities between May and November this year,” he said.
For expired food products and those with altered expiry dates, Mr Moshy explained that they lose essential nutrients and can cause both short-term and long-term illnesses, including cancer.
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Regarding cosmetic products with toxic ingredients, he noted that their effects can be both immediate and long-term, potentially causing skin damage, eye problems, reproductive health issues for women, stunted growth in children and cancer, especially skin cancer.
“We urge business operators to regularly inspect their products to ensure quality, store them according to manufacturers’ guidelines, avoid selling toxic cosmetic products, and immediately stop tampering with expiry dates,” Moshy said.
He added that strict legal actions are being taken against unscrupulous business operators in accordance with existing laws and regulations.
