We model the yield first. Then we build the whole line.

There is no single NAFDAC-style food agency in Kenya. Food safety sits with the Ministry of Health and its Port Health Services under the Food, Drugs and Chemical Substances Act (Cap. 254) and the Public Health Act (Cap. 242), while county public health departments license food premises. Product conformity and import conformity sit with the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), and value chains may also involve the Agriculture and Food Authority, KEPHIS, the Kenya Dairy Board or the Directorate of Veterinary Services. Confirm which of these applies to your product.

Kenya works to premises licensing plus product certification rather than one product-registration number. In practice an operator needs a Food Hygiene Licence from the county, or from MoH Port Health Services for port and import-export premises, a county Single Business Permit, a NEMA environmental impact assessment licence for the plant, a KEBS Standardization Mark permit for each locally manufactured product covered by a mandatory Kenya Standard, and sector registration where it applies. Ordinary processed foods are not individually registered the way they are in Nigeria or Ghana, but the Kenyan operator should confirm the list for its product and county.

Assessment works from the Food Hygiene Regulations made under Cap. 254 and from the Ministry of Health's Public Health Checklist for Food Hygiene Licensing, together with the Public Health Act (Cap. 242). Legal Notice 106 of 1978 and Legal Notice 425 of 1988 are listed as separate instruments under Cap. 254 rather than one amended text, so which is operative today should be confirmed on Kenya Law before it is cited in a submission. KEBS also publishes adopted East African hygiene codes of practice for food and drink manufacturing, and KS ISO 22000. Layout, drainage, materials and cleaning access should be reviewed against whichever text applies to the operation.

Pre-Export Verification of Conformity is operated by KEBS under the Standards Act (Cap. 496) and Legal Notice No. 78 of 2020; appointed partner inspectors test in the country of supply and issue a Certificate of Conformity used as a customs clearance document. General process machinery does not appear on the annex of products that must carry a supply-country Certificate of Conformity, but several items often supplied with a drying or processing line do — refrigerating and freezing equipment (HS 84.18), electric motors and generators (HS 85.01) and electric generating sets (HS 85.02). The treatment of drying and food-industry machinery headings is not something to assume, and the PVoC manual has been revised since the version published on the Kenya Trade Information Portal, so have KEBS or the appointed partner confirm each HS line in the scope of supply before shipment. Registered local manufacturers can separately apply to KEBS for an exemption covering machinery and industrial spares imported for their own use; it is an application route, not an automatic right, and it should be started early.

Depending on classification, the importer and clearing agent may need a commercial invoice, packing list and shipping documents, a KEBS Certificate of Conformity or, where a consignment arrives without one, a Local Certificate of Conformity after destination inspection at a fee, an Import Standardization Mark permit where goods are intended for sale on the local market, and any KEBS exemption approval. Declarations and permits are filed with Kenya Revenue Authority Customs through the KenTrade national electronic single window. The Kenyan importer and clearing agent should confirm the exact list.

Not as a blanket rule for every plant. Hygiene and food safety controls are required by the Cap. 254 regulations and the county licensing checklist, and HACCP-based controls may be required by buyers, by export destinations or by a particular Kenya Standard. KS ISO 22000 certification is separate third-party certification, and whether it is needed depends on the customer and the market being served.

No blanket Kenyan certification is claimed on this page or for any machine. GEM Foodtech can discuss engineering specifications, food-contact materials and the technical documentation available for a proposed line. KEBS conformity status, PVoC treatment and any permit or exemption must be verified for the specific machine and shipment by the Kenyan project owner with KEBS before the equipment ships.

Our engineering team can review food-contact materials, cleanability and CIP access, process flow, drainage and utility requirements at design stage, and supply documentation the Kenyan project owner needs for its submissions. Site approvals, the Food Hygiene Licence, S-Mark permits, NEMA licensing and import clearance remain the responsibility of the Kenyan project owner and the relevant authorities.