The Zambia Compulsory Standards Agency (ZCSA) has quarantined assorted products falling within the scope of Compulsory Standards in the Copperbelt, North-Western and Luapula Provinces valued at approximately K490, 000.
The quarantined products were supplied on the market in the three provinces without authority from the Agency as required by the Compulsory Standards Act No.3 of 2017.
Fruit flavoured drinks, opaque beer, potable spirits, mealie meal, bottled drinking water, among other products valued at K489, 050.62 were quarantined last week during market surveillance inspections aimed at ensuring continued compliance with Compulsory Standards.
In Ndola, 9,984 bottles of bottled drinking water, 1, 751 bottles of potable spirits, 146 bottles of Fruit flavoured drinks and 267 crates of opaque beer were seized from different locations.
In Solwezi, 2, 285 bottles of potable spirits were quarantined namely Gilberts Gin, Kremlin Vodka, Vintage Gold Superior, Three Growns and Sundowner.
In Kitwe, 556 bags of mealie meal were quarantined while 105 bottles of Gilberts Gin, Kremlin Vodka, Vintage Gold Superior, Three Growns, Sundowner were quarantined in Mansa.
In another development, the Agency has seized six bales of used textile products containing undergarments in Lusaka Province valued at K30, 000.
This happened on July 19, 2023 as ZCSA officers were conducting their routine inspections in Makeni and Chawama Townships of Lusaka.
ZCSA officers came across a light truck offloading bales of used textile products along a certain road in Chawama.
At that point, the officers got interested and proceeded to verify what was contained in the bales.
However, upon noticing that the ZCSA vehicle had parked few metres in front, the driver of a small truck which was offloading bales sped off leaving 13 bales along the road.
As ZCSA officers approached the scene, a lady and two gentlemen who were standing by the bales, supposedly owners of the bales, ran away into the crowded market.
The inspection was carried out and only six out of 13 bales were found to contain used undergarments.
People around the scene could not help to identify the owners of the bales but ZCSA officers proceeded to withdraw the six bales as required by the Compulsory Standard Zambian Standard (ZS) 559: Inspection and Acceptance Criteria for Used Textile Products.
ZS 559 prohibits the importation and sale of used textile products containing used undergarments such as pyjamas, night gowns, pants, brassieres, camisoles and vests, among others.
In 2006, the Zambian Government declared the national standard for used textile products as a compulsory standard to protect the safety of consumers as used textile products that are worn in very close contact with the skin may cause ailments such as skin rash.Used undergarments might potentially transmit infections to secondary users of used undergarments.
ZCSA has warned importers and traders to avoid supplying products which are within the scope of compulsory standards on the market without authority from the Agency as doing so may put the health and safety of consumers at risk.
ZCSA is further appealing to the public to continue alerting the Agency on any suspicious products on the market.
The Agency will continue rolling out enforcement and education activities across the country in a bid to foster compliance of products within the scope of compulsory standards.
ZCSA, a statutory body under the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry (MCTI), is mandated to administer, maintain and enforce compulsory standards for the purpose of public safety, health, consumer and environmental protection.
