Abstract:
Background information: Quality assurance and quality control procedures for food fortification were introduced in fortified wheat flour industries. This was done so as to ensure that the wheat flour circulating in the market are adequately fortified. Adherence to the stipulated quality assurance and quality control procedures helps manufacturer to be able to monitor the products quality and safety before entering the market. Hence it is important to know at what extent are they implement the stipulated procedures and the perceived barriers they encounter during implementation. Aim of the study: This study assessed level of compliance to specified quality assurance and quality control procedures among fortified wheat flour manufacturers, determined the extent to which fortified wheat flour comply with the specifications and identified industry barriers that affect attainment of compliance. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in Dar Es Salaam involving 6 fortified wheat flour manufacturers from July to August 2017. Six observational checklist were used to assess the level of compliance to QA/QC procedures performed by manufacturers. A total of 216 samples randomly selected from the market were analysed to determine the extent of compliance to the specification. The obtained data were analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively to get the results. Interview guide with semi structured questions was used to collect data from 6 respondents on perceived barriers. Results: Proportion of compliance to QA/QC procedures implemented by manufacturers was (33.3%), was mainly predicted by observational checklist from TFDA guideline for external monitoring of fortified wheat flour. All respondents perceived QA/QC procedures was important for compliance to food regulations, however, they face difficulties to comply with stipulated QA/QC procedures because of perceived barriers: competition with non-fortifying or non-compliant producers, Poor laboratory capacity, lack of regulatory monitoring and clarity, awareness and attitude to food fortification and lack of training in the area of food fortification. Only (67.6%) of samples analyzed were adequately fortified. Conclusions: Two manufacturers (33.3%) out of six complied with stipulated QA/QC procedures stipulated in the manual for internal monitoring of wheat flour. Compliance to Food Fortification Regulations was highly affected by competition with non-fortifying or non-compliance producers, Poor laboratory capacity, lack of regulatory monitoring and enforcement, awareness and attitude to food fortification and lack of training and expertise in the area of food fortification. Percentage of overall inadequately fortified wheat flour was (32.4%).
