The confectionery products are manufactured by the Italian family business Ferrero which is headquartered in Luxembourg.
Kebs says that it has established that there is no evidence that any product subject to the recall in Europe has been imported into the country.
Kebs has called on members of the public to remain vigilant and report to the Bureau any encounter of products suspected to be substandard.
The Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) has given a clean bill of health to popular chocolate product, Kinder Joy, after a two-week-long probe.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the standards body moved to allay fears that the products could contain the dreaded Salmonella contamination, following the recent widespread circulation of an alert issued by the United Kingdom’s Food Standards Agency (FAS).
The confectionery products are manufactured by the Italian family business Ferrero which is headquartered in Luxembourg.
Kebs says that it has established that there is no evidence that any product subject to the recall in Europe has been imported into the country.
While acknowledging that the alert by FAS was authentic, the Kebs managing Director Bernard Njiraini asserted that most of the Kinder products sold locally are sourced from Italy and India, and not from Belgium which was identified as a source of the contaminated variants.
“The Kinder products sold locally are sourced from Italy and India, as the countries of origin, not Belgium – the country that has been identified as the source of the contaminated variants,” said Njiraini.
Mr Njiraini further listed the Kinder products available in the Kenyan market, stressing that none of the variants flagged by FAS has made its way into the country.
The locally available and Kebs certified Kinder products in the country include Kinder Joy chocolate, Kinder Bueno White Chocolate, Kinder Bueno Chocolate, Kinder Chocolate and Kinder Creamy Milky & Crunchy.
Kebs commissioned a probe into the products on April 7, following a warning issued by the Comesa Competition Commission in the wake of concerns that the Kinder products might contain the salmonella bacteria.
Salmonella is a bacterial disease that infects the gut and can cause gastroenteritis. Symptoms include diarrhea, stomach cramps, and sometimes vomiting and fever.
Kebs has called on members of the public to remain vigilant and report to the Bureau any encounter of products suspected to be substandard.
Kinder Joy is popular among urban children, offering a treat and a surprise toy wrapped in the package. Supermarkets are the major distributors of the product.
The surprise toys come in a wide range and can be assembled, helping to build kids’ anticipation for a new purchase. The multinational has recalled some of its products in the UK and the United States over the salmonella scare.
