By: Anne Zaczek, U.S. Grains Council Manager of Global Development Programs
A ceremony was held this month honoring the Tanzanian Central Veterinary Lab (CVL) staff with certificates for completing a U.S. Grains Council- (USGC) sponsored training program focused on new lab equipment and best management practices.
The staff’s successful completion of this training is a building block towards one major objective of the Food for Progress program in Tanzania, which is to create a fully-renovated and operational lab to test the quality of feed ingredients.
The ceremony included presentations from Dr. Proches C. Malamsha, CVL department head, who gave an overview of the training program, and CVL staff, who discussed the new equipment with attndees. By doing this, the forum prepared the workers for future conversations with customers about the advantages of using the lab.
The CVL staff members also designated leads to present the new equipment. Dr. Scholastica Doto, livestock research officer, and Mr. Henry Mlundachuma, lab technician, presented on the urease system, which is used to test the quality of soybean meal, and Elizabeth Kinigu, livestock research officer, presented on the Near Infrared spectroscopy (NIR) machine that analyzes feed ingredient raw materials and the quality of feed.
The ceremony was attended by the Tanzanian Veterinary Laboratory Agency’s (TVLA’s) directors and managers and a representative from the Tanzanian Feed Millers Association. The event was also covered by local media, which have been helpful in attracting customers with samples to be tested. The week following the ceremony’s media pick-up, the lab received 84 samples for testing, which is up from their average of 35 samples per week.
While this training is a good start toward developing the lab, there is still work to be done on formalizing procedures and finalizing the lab’s business plan. To this end, Tokkie Groenewald, a USGC consultant and CEO/owner of SimSoft Development CC, will continue his training of the lab staff and will provide them support in developing their business plan and management practices.
This improvement to the lab and dedication of the staff to conducting accurate testing of feed ingredients will help expand the poultry and feed industries in Tanzania, which over the long-term will build demand for coarse grains used as feed in the region.
Click play below to watch a short clip of the ceremony.