DEAS 741: 2021   
ICS 67.230  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD   
 
 
Cassava wheat composite flour — Specification  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY    
        
    
   
   
     
  
 
 
 
 
 
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East African Community  
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DEAS 741:2021  
 
Foreword  
 
Development of the East African Standards has been necessitated by the need for harmonizing 
requirements governing quality of products and services in East Africa. It is envisaged that through 
harmonized standardization, trade barri ers which are encountered when goods and services are 
exchanged within the Community will be removed.  
 
In order to meet the above objectives, the EAC Partner States have enacted an East African 
Standardization, Quality Assurance, Metrology and Test Act, 20 06 (EAC SQMT Act, 2006) to make 
provisions for ensuring standardization, quality assurance, metrology and testing of products produced 
or originating in a third country and traded in the Community in order to facilitate industrial development 
and trade as well as helping to protect the health and safety of society and the environment in the 
Community.  
 
East African Standards are formulated in accordance with the procedures established by the East 
African Standards Committee. The East African Standards Commi ttee is established under the 
provisions of Article 4 of the EAC SQMT Act, 2006. The Committee is composed of representatives of 
the National Standards Bodies in Partner States, together with the representatives from the private 
sectors and consumer organi zations. Draft East African Standards are circulated to stakeholders 
through the National Standards Bodies in the Partner States. The comments received are discussed 
and incorporated before finalization of standards, in accordance with the procedures of th e Community.  
 
Article 15(1) of the EAC SQMT Act, 2006 provides that “Within six months of the declaration of an East 
African Standard, the Partner States shall adopt, without deviation from the approved text of the 
standard, the East African Standard as a national standard and withdraw any existing national standard 
with similar scope and purpose”.  
 
East African Standards are subject to review, to keep pace with technological advances. Users of the 
East African Standards are therefore expected to ensure tha t they always have the latest versions of 
the standards they are implementing.   
© East African Community 2019 — All rights reserved* 
East African Community  
P O Box 1096  
Arusha  
Tanzania  
Tel: 255 27 2504253/8  
Fax: 255 -27-2504481/2504255  
E-Mail: eac@eachq.org   
Web: www.each.int   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
DRAFT EAST AFRICAN STANDARD                                                     DEAS 741:2021   
 
 
1 Scope  
 
This draft East African Standard specifies the requirements, sampling and test methods for c assava -
wheat compos ite flour for human consumption.  
 
 
 
2 Normative references  
 
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document. For 
dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the late st edition of the 
referenced document (including any amendments) applies.  
 
EAS 38, General standard for the labelling of pre -packaged foods  
 
EAS 39 , Code of practice for hygiene in the food and drink manufacturing  industry  EAS 900  
 
EAS 738 - Fresh sweet cas sava -Specification  
 
EAS 778  - Fresh bitter cassava – Specification  
 
EAS 1 - Wheat flour – Specification  
 
EAS 51 - Wheat grains Specification  
 
EAS 739, Dried cassava chips — Specification  
 
EAS 744, Cassava and cassava products — Determination of total cyanoge ns ─ Enzymatic 
assay  method  
 
EAS 82, Milled cereal products — Methods of test (General methods)  
 
ISO 712  Cereals and cereal products — Determination of moisture content — Reference method  
 
ISO 21527 -2 Microbiology of food and animal feeding stuffs — Horizo ntal method for the enumeration 
of yeasts and moulds — Part 2: Colony count technique in products with water activity less than or 
equal to 0,95  
 
ISO 6579 -1- Microbiology of the food chain — Horizontal method for the detection, enumeration and 
serotyping o f Salmonella — Part 1: Detection of Salmonella spp.  
 
ISO 4833 -1 Microbiology of the food chain — Horizontal method for the enumeration of 
microorganisms — Part 1: Colony count at 30 °C by the pour plate technique  
 
ISO 16649 -2 Microbiology of food and anima l feeding stuffs — Horizontal method for the enumeration 
of beta -glucuronidase -positive Escherichia coli  — Part 2: Colony -count technique at 44 degrees C 
using 5 -bromo -4-chloro -3-indolyl beta -D-glucuronide  
 
ISO 7305 Milled cereal products — Determination o f fat acidity  
 
ISO 5498  Agricultural food products — Determination of crude fibre content — General method  
 
ISO 5986  Animal feeding stuffs — Determination of diethyl ether extract  
 
CODEX STAN 193 - Codex general standard for contaminants and toxins in foods  
 
EAS 103, General standard for food additives  
 
EAS 740, Cassava flour  ─ Specification  
  
ISO 16050, Foodstuffs  ─ Determination of aflatoxins B 1 and total content of aflatoxins B 1, B2 , G1 
and G2 in cereals, nuts, and derived products ─ High performance liq uid chromatographic method   
 
 
 
 
3 Terms and definitions  
 
For the purposes of this standard, the following terms and definitions shall apply.  
 
3.1 
cassava -wheat composite flour   
product obtained from milling cassava grits and wheat grains or mixing of cass ava flour and wheat flour   
 
 
3.2. 
filth 
impurities of animal origin (including dead insects)  
 
 
3.4 
foreign matter  
all organic and inorganic materials (such as sand, soil, glass)  
 
 
4   Requirements  
 
4.1 General  requirements  
 
4.1.1 C assava  wheat composite f lour shall be  
 
a) homogenous in size and colour;  
 
b) free of filth and foreign matter;  and  
 
c) free from rancid or any off odours or flavours . 
 
 
4.1.2 The cassava  wheat composite flour shall be processed from  cassava grits /chips/ flour conforming 
to EAS 738/ EAS 77 8/EAS 739 respectively and wheat grain/wheat flour conforming to EAS 51 /EAS 1, 
respectively . 
 
 
4.2   Specific requirements  
 
4.2.1 Cassava wheat composite flour shall conform to requirements in Table 1.  
 
 
 
Table 1 — Compositional requirement f or cassava wheat c omposite flour  
 
 
Characteristic  Requirement  Method of test  
   
Crude fat content, % by mass on a dry weight basis, 
min. 2.0 ISO 5986  
   
Crude fibre content, % by mass on dry matter basis, 
max.  1.25 ISO 5498  
   
Acid value  50 ISO 7305  
   
Acid insoluble ash, % by mass, max.  0.35 EAS 82  
   
   
Moisture content, %, by mass, max.  14 ISO 712  
    
Hydrogen Cyanide,  mg/kg, max  10 EAS 744  
   
 
 
4.2.1 Particle size  
 
Not less than 90 % shall pass through a 0.25 mm sieve for fine flour.  
 
 
5 Food additives  
 
Food additives may be added to the cassava wheat composite flour in accordance with EAS 103.  
 
6 Contaminants  
 
6.1 Pesticide residues  
 
Cassava  wheat  composite flour shall comply with the maximum residue limits for pesticides 
established by t he Codex Alimentarius Commission for this commodity.  
 
6.2 Other contaminants  
 
Cassava wheat composite wheat flour shall comply with the maximum levels of the Codex 
General Standard for Contaminants and Toxins in Food and Feed (CODEX STAN 193).  
 
7 Hygiene  
 
Cassava -wheat composite flour shall be prepared and handled in accordance with EAS 39 and 
shall conform to microbiological limits in specified in Table 2.  
 
 
Table 2 — Microbiological limits  
 
Micro -organism  Maximum limit  Method of Test  
Escherichia. coli,  CFU/g  Absent  ISO 16649 -2 
   
TPC,CFU/g,max  105 ISO 4833 -1 
   
Salmonella  spp per 25 g Absent  ISO 6579 -1 
 
Yeast and mould, CFU/g, max.  104  
ISO 21527 -2 
 
 
 
8 Packaging  
 
The cassava wheat composite flour shall be packaged in materials which will safeguar d the 
hygienic , nutritional, technological and organoleptic qualities of the product . 
  
9 Labelling  
 
In addition to the requirements of EAS 38 , the following shall be legibly  and indelibly  marked  
 
a) common name of the product shall be “Cassava wheat composite flour  
 
 
b) list of ingredients in descending order of proportion;  
 
c) net weight  
 
d) name and physical address of the manufacturer/packer/distributor and /or trade name/ 
brand name;  
 
e) lot identification co de or in clear mark to identify the producing factory and the lot; and  
  
f) manufacturing  date and expiry date;  
 
g) storage instructions as ‘store in a cool dry place;  
 
h) instructions on disposal of used package.  
  
i) declaration of fortification/ use of fortification  logo if fortified  
 
 
10 Sampling  
 
Sampling shall be done in accordance with EAS 900 .