New Pesticides Lab Opens in Mombasa

    MOMBASA, KENYA, January 01, 2015 /24-7PressRelease/ -- SGS's new Pesticides Maximum Residue Limits (MRL) Laboratory in Mombasa, Kenya was officially opened in October with a ceremony hosted by Albert Stockell, Managing Director, SGS Kenya Limited, and attended by government officials and local dignitaries including, Dr. Johnson Irungu, Director of Crops Management, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries.

At a time of great uncertainty in Kenya's horticulture and agriculture and food industries, as a result of pesticide residue regulation, the Ministry of Agriculture Livestock and Fisheries, the Ministry of East African Affairs Commerce and Tourism, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, KePHIS and the HCDA all are working very hard to address the issue and protect local business.

Tuned to the Industry's Needs
Kenya operates in a global market and its agricultural industry in particular is part of the extended global supply chain, where adherence to global food safety standards is paramount. Equipped with state of the art LC-MS/MS and GC-MS/MS systems which can achieve detection levels as low as 5 PPB, SGS's Mombasa laboratory now has the capability to test 451 compounds, all validated according to SANCO criteria and therefore meeting EU standards, making it possible for SGS Kenya to test vegetables, fruits and flowers for export to the EU. This investment also opens the door to other quality sensitive markets such as the USA, Japan and Korea.

"This is a landmark event for both SGS and Kenya's agriculture industry at a time when the horticultural industry is pressing hard for a technically advanced, full scope, fast and reliable analytical service to support both local monitoring programmes and export quality analysis," said Mr Stockell, Managing Director, SGS Kenya. "We have assembled an excellent technical team and embarked on an intensive training programme for our chemists, some of whom spent several weeks at the SGS overseas R&D centres to undergo hands-on training."

Ready to Serve Regional Businesses
SGS's overriding objective for this project was to establish, in Kenya, a Pesticides MRL laboratory of similar capability to any European laboratory. In addition to investment in equipment and recruitment of the best staff, the laboratory team have completed a rigorous year long evaluation of each of 451 compounds currently validated according to the EU recommended DG SANCO criteria. This validation was completed under the scrutiny and supervision of pesticides residue testing experts from other SGS locations, until the SGS Group technical team was ready to approve the validation.

In addition to the lab's ISO 17025 accreditation, it has been assessed by Kenya's Pest Control Products Board (PCPB) and currently is the only private lab in Kenya designated for pesticides residue analysis for the registration of pest protection products.

Strategically located and staffed by experts our new facility also benefits from a sample drop-off point at the JKIA Nairobi airport and turn-around-times as low as 24 hours. SGS is waiting to supply the country's horticultural and food industry, and its stakeholders, with technical excellence and the highest levels of integrity.

About SGS Kenya Laboratory
SGS is the world's leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 80,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 1,650 offices and laboratories around the world.

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