Uganda: Soroti farmers faulted for failure to utilise aflatoxin removal machine

The Minister of State for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Hon. Desire Muhoozi has faulted Soroti farmers over failure to utilise the aflatoxin removal machine. The minister said this as she was responded Bukedea County Member of Parliament, Hon. David Okwere who said that 80 per cent of cereals being purchased by PELA commodities factory in Soroti contain aflatoxin. Okwere said that the discovery was made during a recent visit to Soroti Industrial Park which houses PELA commodities, a factory that deals in value addition of cereals like millet and sorghum, among others. “What we learnt is that all the cereals which this factory is purchasing have got about 80 per cent of aflatoxins and this is a red flag that all the people in Teso Sub Region are consuming aflatoxins,” he said. Okwere called for an intervention from the Ministry of Agriculture saying that if not mitigated, residents of Teso risk contracting cancer as a result of consuming aflatoxins. The minister however, said that government invested in the aflatoxin removal machine in Teso sub region but it has been idle since 2018. “Ever since government availed the equipment according to your requirement, you have n