Tanzania Captures Kenya's Chicks Again

Chicks

Tanzania has once again confiscated and burnt chicks from Kenya destined for its market.

Maria Mashingo, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Livestock told media outlets in the country on Tuesday that the action was taken after it emerged that the 5,000 one-day-old chicks were not properly documented.

"The law is clear: any products without proper documentation must be destroyed," the Mwananchi newspaper quoted her.

"The owner had no documentation on the consignment," she added.Tanzania Revenue Authority head of operations at the Kenya-Tanzania border in Namanga, Edwin Iwato, supported Mashingo's account saying the chicks were handed over to livestock ministry officials after the owner failed to produce requisite documents. 

The confiscation of the 5,000 one-day-old chicks comes barely months after a similar occurrence in October last year when 6,400 one-day-old chicks valued at Tsh12.5 million were seized and burnt on similar grounds.

The 6,400, it emerged, had been ordered by a business lady by the name Mary Matia, a resident of Arusha.

Tanzanian authorities however argued at the time that it was imperative to burn the chicks to avoid a potential disease outbreak in accordance with the country's laws.