In order to gain from trade in horticultural commodities at the world market, Kenyan entrepreneurs are planning to borrow the Chinese concept of training packers. According to Cornelly Serem, chairman of the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA), substandard packaging that is attributed to the lack of training of packers is to blame for Kenya's loss in securing the international market for its horticultural produce.
Serem: "We want to copy China and set up a fully-fledged training institution for packers to help position our horticultural produce in the international market.” He added that the government is considering establishing an institution to train fresh produce packers to boost the competitiveness of locally produced fruits and vegetables in the global market.
Christine Rotich, the acting director of the Horticultural Crops Directorate, said that the certification process that started in the year 2017 is a blessing to Kenya's eight refrigerated packing houses. Rotich noted that all personnel involved in the production process have been adequately trained to implement and follow the HACCP plan. HACCP, which stands for hazard analysis and critical control point, is a tool to assess hazards and establish control systems that focus on prevention rather than relying mainly on end-product testing.
Source: en.people.cn