DEAS 771: 2022  
ICS 67.080.20  
 
© EAC 2022                                                                                                                               Second  Edition 
2022  
 DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  
Fresh sweet  potato  — Specification  
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY  
 DEAS 771: 2022  
ii © EAC  2022 – All rights reserved  
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Reproduction for sales purposes may be subject to royalty payments or a licensing agreement.  
Violators may be prosecuted . DEAS 771: 2022  
© EAC 2022 – All rights r eserved  iii 
 Contents  Page 
Foreword  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................  iv 
1 Scope  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  1 
2 Normative references  ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................  1 
3 Terms and definitions  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........................  1 
4 Requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  2 
4.1 General requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...........................  2 
4.2 Minimum requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ .........................  2 
4.3 Quality tolerances  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ . 3 
5 Food additives  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....... 3 
6 Classification  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  3 
6.1 Types of classes  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 3 
6.2 Class requirements  ................................ ................................ ................................ ...............................  4 
6.2.1  Extra class  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..............  4 
6.2.2  Class I  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .....................  4 
6.2.3  Class II  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................  4 
7 Tolerances  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..............  4 
7.1 Quality tolerances  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ . 4 
7.2 Size tolerances  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...... 5 
8 Sizing  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ......................  5 
9 Contaminants  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .........  5 
9.1 Heavy metals  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..........  5 
9.2 Pesticide residues  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ . 5 
10 Hygiene  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...................  5 
11 Packaging  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ...............  5 
13 Labelling  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .................  5 
14 Sampling  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................  6 
Bibliography  ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ........................  7 
 DEAS 771: 2022  
iv © EAC  2022 – All rights reserved  
 Foreword  
Development of the East African Standards has been necessitated by the need for harmonizing requirements 
governing quality of products and services in the East African Community. It is envisaged that through 
harmonized standardization, trade barriers that are encountered when goo ds and services are exchanged 
within the Community will be removed.  
The Community has established an East African Standards Committee  (EASC)  mandated to develop and 
issue East African Standards  (EAS) . The Committee is composed of representatives of the Na tional 
Standards Bodies in Partner States, together with the representatives from the public and private sector 
organizations  in the community .  
East African Standards are developed through  Technical Committees that are representative of key 
stakeholders i ncluding government, academia, consumer groups, private sector and other interested parties. 
Draft East African Standards are circulated to stakeholders through the National Standards Bodies in the 
Partner States. The comments received are discussed and in corporated before finalization of standards, in 
accordance with the Principles and procedures for development of East African Standards. XXXXXX.  
East African Standards are subject to review, to keep pace with technological advances. Users of the East 
African Standards are therefore expected to ensure that they always have the latest versions of the standards 
they are implementing .  
The committee responsible for this docu ment is Technical Committee EASC /TC 016, Fresh fruits, vegetables, 
tubers  and flowers . 
This second  edition cancels and replaces the first edition (EAS  771:2012), which has been technically revised.  
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be subject of patent 
rights. EAC shall not be held responsibl e for identifying any  or all such patent rights.  
 DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD  DEAS 771: 2022  
 
© EAC 2022 – All rights reserved  1 
 Fresh sweet  potato  — Specification  
1 Scope   
This Draft East African Standard specifies the requirements , sampling  and test methods for fresh sweet  potato  
(Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam ). to be supplied fresh an d either packaged or so ld loose for human consumption.  
2 Normative references   
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes 
requirements of this document.  For dated references, only the edi tion cited applies. For undated references, 
the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.  
EAS 38, General standard for labeling of prepackaged foods  
EAS 39, Hygiene in the food and drink manufacturing industry – Code of practice   
EAS 103 , Schedule for permitted food additives  
CAC/RCP 44 , Code of practice for packaging and transport of fresh fruit and vegetables  
CAC/RCP 53, Code of Hygienic Practice for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables  
CODEX STAN 192, General Standard for Food Additives  
CODEX STAN 193, Codex general standard  for contaminants and toxins in food and feed  
ISO 874, Fresh fruits and vegetables – Sampling   
3 Terms and definitions   
For the purposes of this document, the following  terms and definitions apply.  
ISO and IE C maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:  
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at http://www.iso.org/obp  
3.1  
sweet  potato  
roots obtained from a plant of the speci es Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam  
3.2 
firm 
not soft, shrivelled or flabby   
2 © EAC  2022 – All rights reserved  
 3.3 
fresh  
roots  obtained  from a plant of the species Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam  having visual characteristics of colour, 
texture and firmness typical of  variety  just harvested sweet  potat o  
3.4 
whole  
fresh storage roots which have not been subjected to any mechanical damage or peeling of its initial 
harvested mass with the exemption of trimming . 
3.5 
sound/wholesome  
free from pests, disease s, serious deterioration (such as but not limited t o decay, breakdown, freezing 
damage, or soft ness ) or adulteration/contamination, that appreciably affects their appearance, edibility  and the 
keeping quality of the produce or  market value  
3.6 
practically free  
produc e without defects  in excess of those th at can be expected to result from, and be consistent with good 
agronomical  and handling practices employed in the production and marketing of the fresh sweet  potatoes  
3.7 
clean  
practically free from dirt or staining  or other foreign matter or extraneous ma tter 
3.8 
food grade material  
material which will safeguard the hygienic, safety, nutritional, technological and organoleptic qualities of the 
product  
3.9 
extraneous matter  
organic matter of plant origin other than the fresh sweet  potato  
3.10 
foreign matter  
organic and inorganic materi als (such as sand, soil, glass) other than extraneous matter in the fresh sweet  
potato  
4 Requirement s 
4.1 General requirements  
Fresh sweet potato  should be carefully harvested after reaching an appropriate degree of physiologic al 
development taking into account the characteristics of the variety and the area in which they are grown . The 
fresh sweet  potatoes shall have been carefully harvested.  
4.2 Minimum requirements  
Fresh sweet  potatoes supplied to the market shall be : 
a) firm; 
b) fresh;  
c) wholesome/sound;   
© EAC 2022 – All rights r eserved  3 
 d) not affected by rot, mould or deterioration  as to make it unfit for consumption ; 
e) clean, and practically free of any visible  extraneous matter or  foreign matter, except permitted 
substances used to prolong its shelf life;  
f) of colour, taste and texture  characteristic of variety ; 
g) free from pests and damage caused by pests ;  
h) free from excess external moisture, adequately surface dried if they have been washed ;  
i) free from any foreign smell and/or taste with exception of preservation agents  allowed under clause 5 ;  
j) practically free from mechanical damage;  and 
k) free from greening   
4.3 Quality tolerances  
Tolerances for the quality requirements shall be such that:  
a) a total of no more than 10 % of the fresh sweet  potatoes in the lot may fail the requirements;  
b) no more than 3 % of the fresh sweet potatoes may be affected by rot, mould or deterioration as to 
make it unfit for consumption;  
c) no more than 3 % of the fresh sweet  potatoes may be affected by damage caused by pests; and  
d) no more than 3 % of the fresh sweet  potatoes may be affected by rot, mould or deterioration; and 
damage caused by pests in combination.  
5 Food additives  
Fresh sweet  potatoes may be preserved by use of food additives  such as wax,  in accordance with Codex Stan 
192. 
6 Classifica tion  
6.1 Types of classes  
Fresh sweet  potatoes  may be classified . 
Where classification is done the following grade s shall be used in accordance with the requirement s of each 
class  and the quality tolerances  in Clause 7. 1 
 extra class;  
 class  I; and  
 class  II.  
4 © EAC  2022 – All rights reserved  
 6.2 Class requirements  
6.2.1  Extra class  
Fresh  sweet  potatoes shall meet the minimum requirements in Clause 4.2 and shall be:  
a) of superior quality in terms of texture and appearance; and  
b) characteristic of the variety and uniform in shape and size.  
Fresh sweet potatoes shall be free from defects, with the exception of defects on the surface  affecting not 
more than 2 % of the fresh sweet  potatoes  
6.2.2  Class I  
Fresh  sweet potatoes shall  meet the minimum requirements in  Clause 4.2 and shall be;  
a) of good quality; and  
b) uniform in shape and size that are characteristic of the variety.  
The following slight defects may be allowed, provided these do not affect the general appearance, the quality, 
the keeping quality and presentation of fresh sweet  potatoes :  
a) defects in shape  not exceeding 5% of the fresh sweet  potatoes;  
b) bruising, not exceeding 10% of the surface area of the fresh sweet  potatoes;   
c) scraped areas, not exceeding 20% of the surface area of the fresh sweet  potatoes; and  
d) scarred and healed damage, not exceeding 5% of the surface area of the fresh swee t potatoes.  
6.2.3  Class  II 
Fresh  sweet potatoes shall meet the minimum requirements  in Clause 4.2 but may not qualify for inclusion in 
the higher classes. The following defects may be allowed : 
a) defects in shape not exce eding 10% of the fresh sweet  potatoes;  
b) bruising, not exceeding 20% of the surface area of fresh swe et potatoes   
c) scraped areas, not exceeding 30% of the surface area of fresh sweet  potatoes and  
d) scarred and healed damage, not exceeding 10% of the surface are a of the fresh sweet  potatoes . 
7 Tolerances  
7.1 Quality tolerances  
Tolerances in respect of quality and size shall be allowed in each package for produce not satisfying  the 
requirements of the class indicated.  
The following tolerance limits may be allowed fo r specific classes:  
a. Extra class: 5  % by weight of fresh sweet  potatoes not satisfying the requirements of extra 
class, but meeting those of Class I or exceptionally coming within the tolerances of class I.   
© EAC 2022 – All rights r eserved  5 
 b. Class I: 10  % by weight of fresh sweet  potatoes no t satisfying the requirements of class I, but 
meeting those of Class II or exceptionally, coming within the tolerances of class II.  
c. Class II: 10 % by weight of fresh sweet  potatoes not satisfying the minimum requirements, 
with the exception of produce affe cted by rotting or any other deterioration rendering it unfit 
for consumption.  
7.2 Size tolerances  
For all classes, 10% by number or weight of fresh sweet  potatoes corresponding to the size immediately 
above and/or below that indicated on the package.  
8 Sizing 
Fresh sweet  potatoes may be designated by size in accordance with Table 1. When the designations in Table 
1 are used the sizes shall be within the specification in Table 1.  Size is determined by weight.  
Table 1 — Size for fresh sweet  potatoes  
Size code  Size Weight , g 
A Large  >  650 
B Medium  450 - 650 
C Small  < 450  
9 Contaminants  
9.1 Heavy metals   
Fresh sweet potatoes shall comply with those  maximum levels of CODEX STAN 193.  
9.2 Pesticide residues  
Fresh sweet  potatoes shall comply with  those maxim um residue limits for pesticide residues established by 
Codex Alimentarius Commission for this commodity . 
10 Hygiene  
Fresh sweet  potatoes shall be handled in hygienic manner in accordance with EAS 39 and CAC/RCP 53 .   
11 Packaging  
Fresh sweet potatoes  shall be packaged in food grade material. Fresh sweet potatoes  shall be packaged in 
each container in compliance with CAC/RCP 44.  
13 Labelling  
13.1 In addition to the requirements of EAS 38, the following specific requirements shall apply and shall be 
legibl y and indelibly marked:  
a) name of the produce to be shown on the label shall be “Fresh sweet  potatoes”;   
6 © EAC  2022 – All rights reserved  
 b) name and location address of the manufacturer/exporter/ packer;  
c) country of origin of the produce;  
d) place of origin;  
e) grade (only when classified);  
f) Variety ; 
g) size (size code) , when applicable ; 
h) net weight (in metric system);  
i) lot identification (batch number);  
j) declaration of preservatives, if used;  
k) date of harvest;  
l) packing date;  
m) storage conditions; and  
n) Indication “for human food”.  
13.2  When labelling non -retail packages, information for non -retail packag es shall either be given on the 
packages or in accompanying documents, except that the name of the produc e, lot identification and the 
name and address of the producer or packer shall appear on the package . 
14 Sampling  
Sampling of fresh sweet potato shall be done in accordance with ISO 874 .   
© EAC 2022 – All rights r eserved  7 
 Bibliography  
[1] EAS 771:2021, Fresh sweet  potatoes — Specification  
 DEAS 771: 2022    
 
© EAC 2022  – All rights reserved