AFDC12 (6579) P 3/TZS 557: 2015  
                                                                                              ICS: 67.060  
 
© TBS 201 9                                                                                                           First Edition 201 9 DRAFT  TANZANIA STANDARD  
 
 
 
Amaranth flour — Specification  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
              TANZANIA BUREAU OF STANDAR 
ii  ©TBS 201 9 – All rights reserved     
                                                                                                                      
©TBS 201 9– All rights reserved                1  
 
Amaranth flour — Specification  
 
 
0 Foreword  
 
Amaranth (Amaranthus spp .) flour is obtained from amaranth grains.  Amaranth  flour is one of the  
growing  important food product s in the country. The preparation of this Tanzania Standard  is 
meant to ensure that amaranth  flour produced and /or t raded in the country is of good quality and 
safe for human consumption.  
 
In the  preparation of this Tanzania Standard  assistance was obtained  from amaranth  flour 
processors . 
 
This Tanzania Standard is a revision of the first version finalized i n 2015 . This second edition 
cancels and rep laces the first edition TZS 557:2015  which has b een technically revised.  
 
 
In reporting the results of a test or analysis in accordance with the Tanzania Standard, if the final 
value observed or calculated is to be rounded off, it shall be done in accordance with TZS 4  (see 
clause 2).  
 
 
1 Scope  
 
This Ta nzania Standard specifies  the requirements  and methods of sampling and test  for 
amaranth  flour milled from grains of the amaranth intended for human consumption . 
 
 
2 Normative  References  
 
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the applica tion of this document. For 
dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the 
referenced document (including any amendments) applies.  
 
Codex Stan 192 General Standard for Food Additives  
Codex Stan 193, Gener al Standard for contaminants in food  
Codex online database for pesticide residues in food  
TZS 109, Code of hygiene for food processing units — General  
TZS 118, Method of plate count of bacteria in foodstuffs  
TZS 119, Method for detection and estimation of coliform bacteria in foodstuffs  
TZS 122 , Foodstuffs — Microbiological examination for salmonellae         
TZS 131, Foodstuffs — Method for yeast and moulds count   
TZS 1492, Fruits and vegetables — Determination of tin content  
TZS 1502, Fruits and vegetables  — Determination of arsenic content 187.  
TZS 963 (Part 2):2007 (1st Ed), Starch and derived products – Heavy metals content – Part 2 – 
Determination of mercury content by atomic absorption sp  
 
TZS 268, General atomic absorption spectrophotometric method fo r determination of lead in food 
stuffs  TZS 730 (Part 2)  
TZS 268, General atomic absorption spectrophotometric method for determination of lead in food 
stuffs  
TZS 330, Cereals — Sampling of milled products    
ii  ©TBS 201 9 – All rights reserved  TZS 331, Cereals — Methods of test for milled prod ucts 
TZS 4, Rounding off numerical values  
TZS 538, Packaging and labeling of foods  
TZS 799 , Agricultural products, determination of aflatoxins.  
 
 
 
3. Term and definition  
 
For the purpose of this Tanzania S tandard the following definition  shall apply:  
 
Amar anth flour  
 
Amaranth flour is the flour produced by grinding amaranth grains  into fine powder  
 
 
4 Requirements  
 
4.1 General requirement s 
 
4.1.1 The amaranth grain from which the flour is milled shall be safe for human consumption  
 
4.1.2 Amaranth flour shal l be of natural colour conforming to the colour of amaranth from which it 
was prepared.  
 
4.1.3 Amaranth flour shall be , safe,  and of good quality. The product shall have the characteristic 
flavour of good amaranth flour, free from signs of spoilage and fro m sour or bitter flavours.   
 
4.1.4 All processing of the amaranth including drying, milling and other treatment of the amaranth 
intermediate milling products and the amaranth flour shall be carried out in a manner that:  
 
a) minimizes loss of nutritive values particularly protein quality  
 
b) avoids undesirable changes in technological properties of the amaranth flour.  
 
4.1.5 The amaranth flour shall be free from insects, larvae, fungal infestation, rodent 
contaminations, dirt and other extraneous matter.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
    
                                                                                                                      
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4  ©TBS 201 9 – All rights reserved   
 
 
4.2 Specific requirements  
 
Amaranth  flour shall conform to th e requirements given in t able 1 . 
Table 1 — Compositional requirements for amaranth  flour  
 
 Characteristic  Requirement  Test method   
i  Moisture percent m/m max . 13  
 
 
TZS 331  ii  Crude  fibre percent m/m max . 0.7 
iii  Total ash percent m/m max . 1.6 
iv  Acid insoluble as h percent m/m max . 0.15 
v  Crude protein (N x 6.25 ) percent min . 15 
vi  Total iron mg/kg  min.   76 
 
4.3 Particle size  
Not less than 90% shall pass through 0.6mm sieve for fi ne flour and not less than 90% shall pass 
through 1.2mm sieve for course flour  
 
5 Hygiene  
 
5.1 Amaranth  flour shall be prepared under good hygienic practic es as stip ulated in TZS 109 (see 
clause 2).  
 
5.2 Amaranth  flour shall be free from objectionable matt er, off flavor, off odour  and shall be free 
from substances originating from microorganisms or any other deleterious substances in amounts 
which may constitute a health hazard.  
 
5.3 Aflatoxins:   The maximum content of aflatoxins in amaranth  flour when  determined in 
accordance with the method described in TZS 799 (see clause 2) , shall not  exceed 5 µg/kg (ppb) 
for aflatoxin β1 and 10 µg/kg for total aflatoxins . 
 
5.4 Microbiological requirements  
 
Amaranth  flour shall also comply with the microbiological requirements given in table 2. 
 
Table 2 — Microbiological limits for amaranth flour  
 
S/N Microorganism  Maximum limit  Test method 
i  Total plate count cfu/g  105 TZS 118  
ii  E.coli per cfu/ g Absent  TZS 730 (Part 2)  
iii  Salmonella  per 25 g              Not detected  TZS 122  
iv  Yeast s and mo ulds cfu/g  103 TZS 131  
 
 
6 Contaminants  
 
6.1 Heavy metal s 
 
Amaranth flour shall not contain any me tal contaminants in excess of the  quantities specified in 
codex stan 193 and table 3 . 
                                                                                       
AFDC12 (6579) P1/REV.TZS 557: 2015  
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Table 3 — Limit for metal contaminants in Amaranth flour   
 
S/N Characteristics  Maximum (mg/kg)  Test method  
(see clause 2)  
i  Arsenic (as As )  0.2 TZS 1502  
ii  Tin (as S n) 250 TZS 1492  
iii  Lead (as Pb)  0.1 TZS 268  
iv  Mercury (Hg)  0.1               TZS 963 (Part 2)  
 
6.2 Pesticide residues  
 
The maximum allowable pesticide residue limits in amaranth flour  shall be as prescribed in the 
relevant Codex Alimentarius Standard.  
 
 
7 Methods of sampling and analysis  
 
Methods of sampling and analysis of amaranth flour shall be in accordanc e with TZS 330, TZS 
799, and TZS 331 (see clause 2).  
 
 
8 Packaging, marking and labelling  
 
8.1 Packaging  
 
Amaranth  flour shall be packed in new suitab le food grade bags made of paper, polypropylene or 
any other suitable material capable of protecting safety and quality  of the product .  The mouth of 
each package  shall be properly s ealed . 
 
8.2 Marking and labelling  
 
In addition to the requirements given i n TZS 538 (see clause 2 ), each bag / container  shall be 
labeled to contain the under mentioned informat ion: 
 
a) the product name   
b)    
c) the name and physical address  and or location  of the manufacturer ; 
 
d) batch or code number ; 
 
e) date of manufacture /packing ; 
 
f) net weight in SI units ; 
 
g) country of origin ; 
 
h) statement “Chakula cha binadamu” and/or  “Human food”;  
 
i)  the statement   ““Hifadhi mahali pakavu” and or/s tore in cool dry place”;  
 
j) the statement  “Usitumie vichomeo” ; and or  “use no hooks ” and 
k) best before date . 
  
6  ©TBS 201 9 – All rights reserved  8.3 The containers may also be marked with TBS Certification Mark of Quality .  
 
NOTE — The TBS Standards Mark of Quality may be used by manufacturers only under 
license from TBS. Particulars of conditions under which the license is granted can be 
obtained from T BS. 
. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
  
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