Henry Kosgey

All parliamentary appearances

Entries 21 to 30 of 432.

• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was told that 14 per cent was within limits for moisture content. One sample had 14 per cent and another one in MV Aquila had also 14 per cent. I do not authorize the importation of maize. I also do not authorize the distribution. We give the analyses which are within limits. I also cannot say that because of the moisture content, that maize later acquired aflatoxin because when it arrived, it did not have aflatoxin. I do not know where the maize was distributed. view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I have said that the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) distributed the maize in its various depots in Nairobi, South Rift, Central and Eastern provinces. I do not know the extent of aflatoxin and I cannot attribute the reports we heard that the afflatoxin-affected maize which was reported in Eastern Province was that maize. I thought that, that maize was harvested last year by farmers. view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I think that maize was allowed in. The CPB had options. It could have taken the maize and dried it because it had almost one per cent moisture content above the normal 13 per cent or 13.5 per cent. However, it was within limits. If I recall correctly, it was a subject of debate whether 14 per cent was way above limits, but it was decided that it was within limits at that time. view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, it is not normal. view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, first of all, Mr. Koech should know that I stopped growing maize long time ago when it became unprofitable. I am a milk farmer. However, I know – because I represent maize farmers – that at that time, the purchase price of maize from farmers was Kshs2, 300. We bought the maize as a country from various countries, namely South Africa and from the USA. At that time, the international price of maize was very high – it was over Kshs3,000 per bag. I can confirm that. view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I know that this House passed the Biosafety Act and set up the National Biosafety Authority, and that authority is under the Ministry of Agriculture or the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology. It is not under the Ministry of Industrialization. view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, there was no scheme. There was drought in the country in 2008, and we also had post-election violence, which resulted in lower levels of productivity in the country. So, come 2009, we had to import maize from wherever we could get it. It so happened, that one of the areas that had surplus maize which we imported was the United States of America. We also imported maize from South Africa. So, there was no scheme by anybody to bring drought to the country, so that we could import maize. view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, that is a heavily loaded statement. I do not know how many instructions have been issued to various Ministers by the US embassy. All that I know is that concerning this particular consignment of maize of June 2009, there was a request by the US Government that we allowed this importation to take place because at that time, the 14 percent moisture content was deemed to be within limits. It was high but within limits. view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, let us distinguish two things. Maize which has 14 percent moisture content is prone to infection by aflatoxin, which is a mould. Although this maize had a high moisture content, it did not have aflatoxin. There is a difference between being susceptible to aflatoxin infestation and having it. It did not have it at that particular time. You cannot store it while it is at 14 percent. You have to dry it a little bit to come down to 13 percent. So, it did not pose a health hazard if you consumed it straightaway. But if ... view
• 22 Dec 2010 in National Assembly: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, the main reason the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) at that time recommended reshipment was because of the moisture content. That was because maize which came in could mould if it was stored. Apart from that, the argument is that if the maize was allowed in and milled straightway without storage, it was safe for human consumption. We can go on and on with this--- view