PUBLIC REVIEW 
DRAFT  DRAFT UGANDA STANDARD  
  DUS 1576  
First Edition  
2014-mm-dd 
 
 
 Reference number  
DUS 1576: 201 4 
© UNBS 2014 
  
Biofertilizer  ─ Specification  
 DUS 1576: 2014 
ii © UNBS 2014  – All rights reserved  
 Compliance with this standard does not, of itself confer immunity from legal obligations  
A Uganda Standard does not purport to include all necessary provisions of a contract. Users are 
responsible for its correct application  
© UNBS 2014  
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilised in any 
form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and microfilm, without prior written 
permission from UNB S. 
Requests for permission to reproduce this document should be addressed to 
The Executive Director  
Uganda National Bureau of Standards  
P.O. Box 6329 
Kampala  
Uganda  
Tel: 256 414  505 995 
Fax: 256 414  286 123  
E-mail: info@unbs.go.ug  
Web: www.unbs.go.ug  
 
. DUS 1576: 2014  
© UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved  iii 
 Foreword  
Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) is a parastatal under the Ministry of Trade,  Industry and 
Cooperatives established under Cap 327, of the Laws of Uganda.  UNBS is mandated to co-ordinate the 
elaborati on of standards and is  
(a) a member of International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) and  
(b) a contact point for the WHO/FAO Codex Alimentarius Commission on Food Standards, and  
(c) the National Enquiry Point on TBT/SPS Agreements of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).  
The work of preparing Uganda Standards is carried out through Technical Committees. A Technical 
Committee is established to deliberate on standards in a given field or area and consists of representatives of 
consumers, traders, academicians, manufacturers, government and other stakeholders.  
Draft Uganda Standards adopted by the Technical Committee are widely circulated to stakeholders and the 
general public for comments. The committee reviews the comments before recommending the draft standards 
for approval and declaration as Uganda Standards by the National Standards Council.  
This Draft Uganda Standard has been developed as a result of a need to provide guidance to industry in production and regulation of Biofertilizers . 
This Draft Uganda Standard was developed by the UNBS/TC 2/ SC 20 – Agrochemicals and veterinary 
drugs  Sub Committee under the Food and Agriculture standards Technical Committee, UNBS/TC 2.  DUS 1576: 2014 
iv © UNBS 2014  – All rights reserved  
 Introduction  
'Biofertilizer' is a substance which contains living microorganism s which, whe n applied to seed, plant surfaces, 
or soil, colonizes the rhizosphere or the interior of the plant and promotes growth by increasing the s upply or 
availability of  nutrients to the host plant.  
Fertilizers directly increase soil fertility by adding nutrients . Biofertilizers add nutrients through the natural 
processes of fixing atmospheric nit rogen, solubilizing Phosphorus or nutrient mobilization to stimulate plant 
growth through the synthesis of growth promoting substances. They can be grouped in different w ays based 
on their nature and function.  
Most biofertilizers are produced from microorganisms such as Rhizobium, Azotobacter, Azospirillum, 
Phosphate solubilising bacteria. Other types include Mycorrhizal biofertilizers, Potassium mobilizing 
biofertilizers and Zinc solubilising biofertilizers.  
The use of biofertilizers offers economic and ecological benefits by way of soil health improvement and fertility. 
This standard contributes to the fertilizer policy of Uganda which aims to improve the present fertiliz er market 
structure, conduct and performance and at the same time ensure availability of high quality fertilizer products 
for efficient use by the farmers through setting a viable environment that attracts private investment in the fertilizer sector.  
The objective of this standard is to ensure that biofertilizers on the market are appropriately tested through the quality criteria provided while ensuring that farmers obtain only certified products and as well aid the industry 
in the manufacture of quality bi ofertilizers.  This standard will also promote the safe use of bioferilizers and 
promote fair trade.  
 DRAFT UGANDA STANDAR D FDUS 1576: 2014 
 
© UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved  1 
 Biofertilizer  — Specification  
1 Scope  
This Draft Uganda standard specifies  requirements and methods of sampling and test for biofertilizers.  This 
standard does not cover requirements for  conventional chemical fertilizers.  
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 referenc es, the latest edition of the referenced 
document (including any amendments) applies.  
Agricultural Chemicals (Control) Act, 2006 (Act No.1 of 2007)  
The Fert ilizer Control Regulations, 2010 
3 Terms and definitions  
For the purposes of this standard, the foll owing terms and definitions shall apply .  
3.1  
biofertilizer  
any substance derived directly or indirectly from part of microorganisms or product of microorganisms or 
botanical in their natural or modified forms that is manufactured, sold or represented for  use in the 
improvement of the physical condition of soils or to aid plant growth or crop yield  
3.2 fertilizer  
any substance or mixture of substances manufactured, sold or represented for use as a plant nutrient or in the 
improvement of the physical condit ions of soil or to aid plant growth or crop yields  
3.3 
efficacy 
the ability of a fertilizer or supplement to fulfil any label claims and to produce a desired or intended result 
based on the labelled guarantees and directions for use 
3.4 
efficacy assessment  
evaluate product performance in order to establish appropriate label claims, active ingredient guarantee and 
usage patterns  
3.5 soil conditioner  
product used to alter the physical, chemical or biological characteristics of soil DUS 1576: 2014  
2 © UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved  
 3.6 
active agent/ingredient  
living agent in a biofertilizer to which the improvement of the physical condition of soils or aid in plant growth or crop yield are attributed  
4 Requirements 
4.1 General requirements  
The biofertilzer shall comply with existing regulatory requirement. The biofertilizer shall  be fully registered as 
required under the Agricultural Chemicals (Control) Act and have undergone  a complete efficacy assessment 
and environment impact assessment.  
The base or carrier material used in the manufacture of biofertilizers shall be solid or liquid, be free from 
contamination and appropriate for the intended purpose.  
The biofertilizer shall be presented in an appropriate form to aid its application. It may be in the form of dry 
powder, granules or liquid.  
The biofertilizer shall not contain substances that are likely to be detrimental or injurious to vegetation, animals, public health or the environment when used according to the directions provided by the 
manufacturer.  
The biofertilizer shall not contain substances that would, when applied in amounts commonly used or as 
specified in the directions for use, leave in the tissues of a plant a residue of a poisonous or harmful substance.  
4.2 Specific requirements  
4.2.1 Biofertilizers shall comply with the specific requirements sti pulated in table 1.  
Table 1 —  Specific requirements for biofertilizers 
S/N
o. Parameter  Limit  Test 
method 
i) pH 6.5 – 7.5  
ii) Moisture 
content, % 
m/m (For 
biofertilizer 
produced 
using solid 
base 
material)  30 – 40  
iii) Efficiency character  Rhizobium  Azotobacter  Azospirillum  Phosphate 
solubilising 
bacteria  Potassi
um 
mobilizi
ng 
biofertili
zer Zinc 
solubilisi
ng 
fertilizer   
Should 
show 
effective 
nodulation  
on all the 
species The strain 
should be 
capable of 
fixing at 
least 10 mg 
of nitrogen Formation of 
white pellicle 
in semisolid 
nitrogen free 
bromothymol 
blue media.  Phosphate 
solubilizing 
capacity in the 
range of minimum 
30% or m inimum 
5mm solubilisation Minimum 10 mm 
solubilisation zone  
in prescribed media 
having at least 3 mm 
thickness   DUS 1576: 2014  
© UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved  3 
 listed on 
the packet  
Nodulation 
test 
should be 
positive  per g of 
sucrose 
consumed zone in prescribed 
media having at 
least 3 mm 
thickness.  
iv Nitrogen 
fixation  Above 20 
mg/g of 
glucose  NA NA NA NA  
Note: The pH for Phosphate solubilising bacteria, Potassium mobilizing biofertilzers, Zinc solubilising biofertilizers  in liquid form shall be 
5.0 – 7.5 
4.2.2 Biofertilizers which ar e produced from solid carrier material shall pass through a 0.15 – 0.212 mm (150 
– 212 micron)  sieve.  
5 Hygiene  
Biofertilizers shall be produced and handled under hygienic conditions and in appropriate premises in order to 
preve nt contamination of the product.  
Biofertilzers shall comply wit h the limits for micro-organisms  specified in table 2.  
Table 2 — Microbiological limits for biofertilizers  
S/No. Organism  Limit  Test method  (s) 
i) Viable cell count of the active agent  
at manufacture, cfu/mL or cfu/g, 
min. 
• Bacillus   megaterium 
Var.phosphaticum  
• Azospirillum  spp. 
• Azotobacter spp . 
•  Solid  Liquid   
5 X 107 1 X 108 
ii) Viable cell count of the ac tive agent 
at expiry , cfu/mL  or cfu/g , min . 1 X 105  
iii) Non-target bacteria Contamination , 
cfu/mL  or cfu/g , at 105 dilution, 
max. Nil  
iv) Pathogenic microbes, cfu/mL or 
cfu/g, max.  
i. Salmonella  
ii. Shigella  
iii. Vibrio  Nil  
Note: The active agent/ingredient in biofertilizers may be from bacterium, fungus, 
nematode, virus or protozoan 
6 Weights and measures 
The volume and fill of the biofertilizers shall comply with the weights and measures legislation.  DUS 1576: 2014  
4 © UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved  
 7 Packaging  
The containers, including packaging materials,  used to package biofertilizers shall be made only of 
substances, which are safe and suitable for their intended uses.  They shall not impart any toxic substance or 
undesirable odour to the product.  
8 Labelling  
Biofertilizers  shall be labelled with the foll owing specific requirements and shall be marked legibly and 
indelibly : 
a) name of the product shall be “Biofertilizer” ; 
b) active ingredient shall appear in close proximity to the name of the product  by specifying the genus 
and species of the microorganism ; 
c) a brand name may be used to accompany the product name;  
d) microbial density;  
e) name and address of manufacturer, exporter, packer and/or dispatcher ; 
f) type/nature of carrier ; 
g) batch or code number ; 
h) crops for which it is intended;  
i) storage conditions and instructions ; 
j) date of manufacture;  
k) expiry date;  
l) net content;  
m) product registration number;  
n) rate and method of application;  
o) directions /instructions  for use;  and 
p) safety precautions  
9 Sampling   
9.1 Scale of sampling  
9.1.1 Lot 
All containers in a consignment belonging to the same batch of manufacture shall constitute a lot.  If the 
consignment is declared to consist of different batches of manufacture, containers of the same batch shall be 
grouped together and each group so formed shall constitute a separate lot.  
Sample shall be tested from each lot for ascertaining conformity to the requirements of this standard.  DUS 1576: 2014  
© UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved  5 
 9.1.2 Sample size 
The number of containers to be selected from a lot for testing for microbiological and other requirements shall 
depend on the size of the lot and s hall be in accordance with Table 2.  
Table 2  – Number of containers to be selected for sampling  
No. of containers in the lot  No. of containers to be selected (n)  
Microbiological Other tests  
up to 1300 12 18 
1301 to 3200 18 24 
3201 and above  24 30 
9.1.3 Sampling method 
The containers to be selected for testing shall be chosen at random from the lot by the following procedure.  
Starting from any container, count them as 1,2,3…... up to r.  Every rth containers thus counted shall be 
withdrawn, r being the integral part of N/n, where N is the total number of containers in the lot and n is the total 
number of container to be chosen (Table 2 ). 
9.2 Test samples and reference samples 
9.2.1 Samples for microbiological tests 
The sample containers selected for mic robiological tests (see col. 2 of Table 2) shall be divided at random into 
three equal sets and labelled with all particulars of sampling.  One of these sets of sample containers shall be for the buyer; another for the supplier and the third set is the ref erence.  
9.2.2 Samples for other tests  
The sample containers selected for ot her tests (see col. 3 of Table 2) shall be divided at random into three 
equal sets and labelled with all the particulars of the sample.  One of these sets of sample containers shall  be 
for the buyer, another for the supplier and third is the reference.  
9.2.3 Reference samples 
Referee samples shall consist of set of sample containers for microbiological tests (see 9 .2.1) and a set of 
sample containers for  other tests (see 9.2.2) and s hall bear the seals of the buyer and supplier or as agreed to 
between the two.  
10 Methods of analysis  
Test of biofertilzers  shall be done in accordance with the Uganda Standards  stated in the relevant clauses.  DUS 1576: 2014  
6 © UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved  
 Bibliography  
[1] IS 9138:2009, Azotobacter chr oococcum inoculants – Specification  
[2] IS 14806:2008, Azospirillum inoculants –  Specification  
[3] IS 14807:2000, Phosphate solubilising bacterial innoculant –  Specification  
 DUS 1576: 2014 
© UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved  7 
 Certification marking  
Products that conform to Uganda standards may be marked wi th Uganda National Bureau of Standards 
(UNBS) Certification Mark shown in the figure below.  
The use of the UNBS Certification Mark is governed by the Standards Act, and the Regulations made 
thereunder. This mark can be used only by those licensed under the certification mark scheme operated by the Uganda National Bureau of Standards and in conjunction with the relevant Uganda Standard. The 
presence of this mark on a product or in relation to a product is an assurance that the goods comply with the 
requirem ents of that standard under a system of supervision, control and testing in accordance with the 
certification mark scheme of the Uganda National Bureau of Standards. UNBS marked products are 
continually checked by UNBS for conformity to that standard.  
Further particulars of the terms and conditions of licensing may be obtained from the Director, Uganda 
National Bureau of Standards.  
 
 DUS 1576: 2014    
 
ICS 65.080  
Price based on nn pages  
© UNBS 2014 – All rights reserved