(JollofNews) – The Government of the Gambia has lifted a ban on the importation of frozen chicken legs into the West African nation.
The ban was made in September by President Yahya Jammeh ‘to protect the health and welfare of the public, and to ensure that consumers get value and quality for their money’.
However in a sudden U-turn, a statement from the country’s Ministry of Trade, Regional Integration and Employment said while the government has lifted the ban on frozen chicken legs, it will continue to ban the importation of poultry products from sources where hormones or products of hormones are used in their production.
‘‘All imports of poultry products will, therefore, be accompanied by an ‘‘SGS test certificate’’ indicating that the product meets national food safety standards with no use of hormones,’’ the statement said.
In recent years, meat has become very expensive in the Gambia with a kilo of steak costing over D100. With over half of the country’s population living on less than one US Dollar a day, a large percentage of Gambians are now turning to imported cheap commodities and meat from Asia, the Scandinavia and Eastern Europe.