FINAL DRAFT UGANDA 
STANDARD  
  FDUS EAS 773
First Edition
2012-mm-dd
 
 Reference numbe r
FDUS EAS 773: 2012
© UNBS 2012
  
Sweetpotato flour — Specification 
 FDUS EAS 773: 2012 
i i                 ©  U N B S  2012 - 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 2012 
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, in cluding photocopying and microfilm, without prior written 
permission from UNBS. 
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 41 505 995 
Fax: 256 41 286 123 
E-mail: unbs@infocom.co.ug  
Web: www.unbs.go.ug  
 FDUS EAS 773: 2012 
© UNBS  2012 - All rights rese rved                iii National foreword 
Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) is a parastatal under the Ministry  of Tourism, Trade and 
Industry established under Cap 327, of the Laws of U ganda. UNBS is mandated to co-ordinate the elaboration 
of standards and is  
(a) a member of International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) and  
(b) a contact point for the WHO/FAO Codex A limentarius Commission on Food Standards, and  
(c) the National Enquiry Point on TBT/SPS Agr eements 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 gi ven field or area and consists of representatives of 
consumers, traders, academician s, manufacturers, governme nt and other stakeholders. 
Draft Uganda Standards adopted by the Technical Committ ee 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 Final Draft Uganda Standard, FDUS EAS 773: 2012 , Sweetpotato flour  — Specification, is identical with  
and has been reproduced from an Ea st African Standard, EAS 773: 2012 , Sweetpotato flour  — Specification,  
and is being proposed for adoption as a Uganda Standard.  
This standard was developed by Food and agriculture Standards Technical Committee (UNBS/TC 2).  
Wherever the words, “East African Standard" appea r, they should be replaced by "Uganda Standard." 
 
 
   EAS 773:2012
ICS 67.080.20
 
© EAC 2012               First Edition 2012  
 
EAST AFRICAN STANDARD 
 
Sweetpotato flour — Specification 
 
     
 
               
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY EAS 773:2012 9 
 
© EAC 2012 – All rights reserved               ii 
 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 barriers 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, 2006 (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 societ y 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 Committe e is established under the provisions of Article 4 
of the EAC SQMT Act, 2006. The Committee is compos ed of representatives of the National Standards 
Bodies in Partner States, together with the repr esentatives from the priv ate sectors and consumer 
organizations. Draft East African Standards are circul ated 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 t he procedures of the Community.  
 
Article 15(1) of the EAC SQMT Act, 2006 provides that “Wit hin six months of the declar ation 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 therefor e expected to ensure that they always hav e the latest versions of the standards 
they are implementing.   
© East African Community 2012 — 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 
                                                      
* © 2012 EAC — All rights of exploitation in any form and by an y means reserved worldwide for EAC Partner States’ NSBs.  
 EAS 773:2012 
© EAC 2012 – All rights reserved                 iii 
 Acknowledgement 
This standard was devel oped with support from the Policy Analysi s and Advocacy Programme (PAAP) of the 
Association for Strengthening Agricult ural Research in Eastern and Cent ral Africa (ASARECA). This was 
possible though a grant by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). This support 
was used in the process of formulation and mobilization of stakeholders to review the standard in national and 
regional fora. This support is hereby acknowledged. EAST AFRICAN STANDARD EAS 773:2012
 
1               © EAC 2012 – All rights reserved 
 Sweet potato flour — Specification 
1 Scope 
This East African Standard specifies the require ments and methods of sampling and test for flour 
which is obtained from the processing of sweetpotato [ Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.] intended 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 latest edition of the referenced 
document (including any amendments) applies. 
EAS 38,  General standard for the labelling of pre-packaged foods  
EAS 39, Hygiene in the food and drink manufacturing industry – Code of practice  
EAS 82 , Milled cereal products — Methods of test (General methods) 
EAS 103, Schedule for permitted food additives 
CODEX STAN 193 , Codex General Standard for Contaminants and Toxins in Food and Feed 
ISO 712,  Cereals and cereal products — Determinati on of moisture content — Routine reference 
method 
ISO 2171, Cereals and milled cereal products — Determination of total ash ISO 5498, Agricultural food products — Determination of crude fibre content — General method 
ISO 6579, Microbiology of food and animal feeding stuffs  — Horizontal method for the detection of 
Salmonella spp.  
ISO 7251,  Microbiology of food and animal feeding stuffs  — Horizontal method for the detection and 
enumeration of presumptive Escherichia coli — Most probable number technique 
ISO 21527-2, Microbiology of food and animal feeding stuffs — Horizontal 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 24333, Cereals and cereal products — Sampling   
3 Terms and definitions 
For the purpose of this standard, the fo llowing terms and definitions shall apply. EAS 773:2012 9 
3.1  
sweetpotato flour 
product prepared from dried sweetpotato chips or paste by a pounding, grinding or milling process, 
followed by sifting to separate the fibre from the flour 
3.2 
food grade material material that is free from substances that ar e hazardous to human health and may be permitted to 
come in contact with food 
3.3 
extraneous matter 
organic matter of sweetpotato orig in other than sweetpotato flour 
3.4 
foreign matter 
organic and inorganic materials (such as sand, soil,  glass) other than extraneous matter in the flour 
 
3.5 practically free 
without defects  in excess of those that can be ex pected to result from, and be consistent with good 
cultural and handling practices employed in the pr oduction and marketing of the fresh sweetpotato 
4 Essential quality and compositional requirements 
4.1 Raw materials 
The raw materials shall be fresh sweetpotatoes, drie d sweetpotato chips, paste or crumbs made from 
fresh sweetpotatoes conforming to t he relevant East African Standards. 
4.2 General quality requirements for sweetpotato flour 
Sweetpotato flour shall be: 
a) practically free from extraneous matter; 
b) free of off flavours and odours;  c) practically free from any living insects and foreign matter; 
d) safe and suitable for human consumption; and 
e) of colour characteristic of the variety. 
4.3 Compositional requirements 
Sweetpotato flour shall conform to the requirements in Table 1 below. 
                Table 1 — Compositional requirements 
S/N Parameter Requirement Method of test 
1 Total ash content, % by mass on dry matter basis, max. 3.0 ISO 2171 
2 Moisture content, % by mass, max. 12.0 ISO 712 
 
© EAC 2012 – All rights reserved               2 
 EAS 773:2012 
3 Crude fibre content, % by mass on a dry matter basis, max. 2.0 ISO 5498 
4 Acid insoluble ash, % by mass on dry matter basis max. 0.15 EAS 82 
4.4 Specific quality factors 
4.4.1 Particle size  
Not less than 90 % shall pass through a 600 µm sieve for fine flour and not less t han 90 % shall pass 
through a 1200 µm sieve for coarse flour. Testing for particle size shall be done in accordance with 
EAS 82. 
Sweetpotato flour intended for baking purposes shall have particle size of which not less than 90 % 
shall pass through a 250 µm sieve 
5 Food additives 
Food additives may be used in the preparation of  sweetpotato flour in accordance with EAS 103. 
6 Contaminants 
6.1 Pesticide residues  
Sweetpotato flour shall conform to maximum residue limits for pesticide residues established by the 
Codex Alimentarius Commission for this commodity. 
6.2 Other contaminants  
Sweetpotato 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  
Sweetpotato flour shall be prepared and handled in a hygienic manne r in accordance with EAS 39   
and shall conform to microbiological limits specified in Table 2. 
Table 2 — Microbiological limits for sweetpotato flour 
S/N Micro-organism(s) Requirement Method of test 
1 Escherichia coli, cfu/g, max. <1 ISO 7251 
2 Salmonella, 25g, max. absent ISO 6579 
3 Yeasts and moulds, cfu/g, max. 104 ISO 21527-2 
 
8 Packaging 
 Sweetpotato flour shall be packaged in food grade  material which will safeguard the hygienic, 
nutritional, technological and organoleptic qualities of the product.  
© EAC 2012 – All rights reserved               3 
 EAS 773:2012 9 
 
© EAC 2012 – All rights reserved               4 
 9 Weights and measures 
Sweetpotato flour shall be packaged in accordance with the Weights and Measures requirements of 
the destination country.  
10 Labelling  
10.1  In addition to the requirements of EAS 38, the following specific labe lling requirements shall 
apply and shall be legibly and indelibly marked: 
a) common name of the product ‘sweetpotato flour’; 
b) name, and physical address of the manufacturer/ distributor and /or trade name/ brand name; 
c) date of manufacture; 
d) lot identification;  
e) expiry  date;  
f) country of origin; g) the net weight in metric units; 
h) the statement ‘Human Food’ shall appear on the package; 
i) storage instructions; and j) instructions on disposal of used package.  
10.2 When labelling non-retail packag es, information for non-retail pa ckages shall either be given on 
the packages or in accompanying documents, except that the name of the product, lot identification 
and the name and address of the manufacturer or packer shall appear on the packages. 
11 Sampling 
Sampling of sweetpotato flour shall be done in accordance with ISO 24333. 
12 Criteria for conformity  
A lot shall be declared as conforming to this standard if samples inspected or analysed for quality requirements conform to the provisions of this standard. 
  EAS 773:2012
  
© EAC 2012 — All rights reserved