DRAFT KENYA STANDARD    DKS 2775 : 201 7 
ICS 67.060  
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Labelling of complementary foods and 
designated products  — Requirements   
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   KEBS 201 7         First Edition 20 17  DKS 2775 : 201 7 
ii  © KEBS 201 7— All rights r eserved  TECHNICAL COMMITTEE REPRESENTATION  
The following organizations were represented on the Technical Committee:  
Kenya Industria l Research Development Institute  
Kenya Medical Research Institute  
University of Nairobi  
Egerton University  
Ministry of Health – Food Safety Unit  
Ministry of Health – Nutrition and Dietetics Unit  
Kenyatta National Hospital  
IBFAN  
Action Against  Hunger (ACF)  
Kenya Association of Manufacturers  
Nestle Kenya Ltd  
Insta products  
Kenya Bureau of Standards ― Secretariat  
 
REVISION OF KENYA STANDARDS  
 
In order to keep abreast of progress in industry, Kenya Standards shall be regularly reviewed. Suggestions for 
improvem ents to published standards, addressed to the Managing Director, Kenya Bureau of Standards, are 
welcome.  
© Kenya Bureau of Standards, 201 7 
 
Copyright. Users are reminded that by virtue of section of the Copyright Act, Cap. 12 of 2001 of the Laws of Kenya, copyright subsists in all 
Kenya Standards and except as provided under section 26 of this Act, no Kenya Standard produced by Kenya Bureau of Standards may be 
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system in any form or transmitted by any means without prior per mission in writing from the Managing 
Director.  
 DRAFT KENYA STANDARD     DKS 2775 : 201 7 
  ICS 67.060  
© KEBS 201 7— All rights reserved   iii  
 
 
 
 
Labelling of complementary foods and 
designated products — Requirements  
 
 
 
 
KENYA BUREAU OF STANDARDS (KEBS)  
 
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Fax: (+254 041) 229448    Fax: (+254 057) 21814               
  DKS 2775 : 201 7 
iv  © KEBS 201 7— All rights r eserved  Foreword  
This Kenya Standard was prepared by the Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses  under the guidance of 
the Standar ds Project Committee, and it is in accordance with the procedures of the Kenya Bureau of 
Standards.  
This national standard was developed to assist in the implementation of the BMS (Regulations and Control) Act 
of 2012 and in particular article 7 (2) a, whi ch requires labels of designated products be in accordance to the 
Standards Act. The technical committee reviewed existing national standards for labelling of pre -packaged foods 
and noted that they are deficient in ensuring full implementation of the BMS A ct and thus developed this 
standard for that purposes.  
During preparation of this standard, reference was made to the following documents:  
Breast Milk Substitutes (Regulations and Control) Act, 2012 of the laws of Kenya  
WHO International Code of marketing of breast milk substitutes  and subsequent endorsed resolutions   
KS EAS 38 Labelling of pre -packaged foods  
 
Acknowledgement is hereby made for the assistance derived from these sources.  
 
 
 
 DRAFT KENYA STANDARD   DKS 2775 : 2017   
 
© KEBS 201 7— All rights reserved    1 Labelling of complementary foods and designated products — 
Requir ements  
1 Scope  
1.1 This Draft Kenya Standard prescribes the minimum labelling requirements of complementary foods and 
designated products   
1.2 The standard applies to infant formula, follow -up formula, complementary foods, feeding bottles, pacifiers , 
spout s, breast milk fortifiers  and any other product that may be declared as a designated product in 
accordance to Breast Milk Substitutes (Regulations and Control) Act, 2012 of the laws of Kenya . 
2 Normative references  
The following referenced documents are in dispensable for the application of this standard . The latest edition of 
the standard shall apply : 
Breast Milk Substitutes (Regulations and Control) Act, 2012 of the laws of Kenya  
International Code of Marketing of Breast Milk substitutes and accompanying W orld Health Assembly  resolutions  
Regulations published under the BMS Act of 2012   
3 Definition  
For the purpose of this standard, the following definitions shall apply:  
3.1   
Breast Milk Substitutes   
is any food being marketed or otherwise presented as a pa rtial or total replacement  for breast milk, whether or 
not suitable for that purpose  
3.2  
Breast milk fortifier  
Is any nutrient or premix added to breast milk to increase its nutrient content  
3.3 
Complementary food  
is any food whet her manufactured or local ly pre pared  as suitable or presented as suitable  complement to breast 
milk from the age of 6 months  DKS 2775 : 201 7 
2  © KEBS 201 7— All rights reserved  3.4 
Container  
any packaging of food for delivery as a single item, whether by completely or partially enclosing the food and 
includes wrappers. A container may enclose several units or types of packages when such is offered to the 
consumer  
3.5 
Designated product  
include food or drink presented as a partial or total replacement of breast milk, feeding bottles, teats , breast milk 
fortifiers, pacifiers and cups with spout  
3.6 
Distributor  
is a person, corporation or any other entity in the public or private sector engaged in the business (whether 
directly or indirectly) of marketing at the wholesale or retail level a product within the scope of this Code.   
3.7 
Follow-up formula  
is a breast -milk substitute formulated industrially and represented  as suitable for an infant from the age of 6 
months and beyond.   
3.8 
Health claim  
is a representation that states, suggests or implies that a relationship exists between a f ood or constituent of that 
food and health  
3.9 
Infant  
is a child from birth up to the age of 12 months  
3.10 
Infant formula  
is a breast -milk substitute formulated industrially to satisfy the normal nutritional requirements of infants up to six 
months  of age , and adapted to their physiological characteristics.   
3.11 
Label  
is any tag, brand, marks, pictorial , drawing, graphics  or other descriptive matter, written, printed, stenciled , 
marked, embossed or impressed on, or attached to, a container of any product s within the scope of this 
standard .  DKS 2775 : 201 7 
© KEBS 201 7— All rights reserved   3 3.12 
Manufacturer  
is a corporation of other entity in the public or private sector engaged in the business or function (whether 
directly or through an agent or through an entity controlled by or under contract with it) of manufacturing a 
product within the scope  of this standard . 
3.13 
Marketing  
is any method of introducing or selling of a designated product  or complimentary product including promotion, 
distribution, advertising, public relations, information services and  distribution of samples  
3.14 
Nutrition claim  
is any representation which states, suggests or implies that a food had particular nutritional properties including 
but not limited to the energy value  and to the content of protein, fat and carbohydrates, as w ell as the content of 
vitamins and minerals  with the exception of mentioning the substance on the list of ingredients and qualitative 
and quantitative declaration of nutrient as may be required in regulations or product standards  
3.15 
Violation  
is any form  of noncompliance  by a complementary food or designated product to the requirements of this 
standard  and that of BMS Act of 2012 of the laws of Kenya and its accompanying regulations  
3.16 
Young child  
is a child from 12 months to 36 months  of age . 
4 Require ments  
4.1 General requirements  
4.1.1  Complementary food  or designated product  shall not be described or presented on any label or in any 
labelling in a manner that is false, misleading or deceptive or is likely to create an erroneous impression 
regarding i ts character in any respect .   
4.1.2 Complementary food or designated product shall not be described or presented on any label or in any 
labelling by words, pictorial or other devices which refer to or are suggestive either directly or indirectly, of any 
other product with which such food might be confused, or in such a manner as to lead the purchaser or 
consumer to suppose that the food is connected with such other product.  
4.1.3  Labels in pre -packaged designated food product  shall be applied in such a man ner that they will not 
become separated from the container.   DKS 2775 : 201 7 
4  © KEBS 201 7— All rights reserved  4.1.4  Statements required to appear on the label by virtue of this standard or any other standards shall be clear, 
prominent, indelible and readily legible by the consumer under normal conditions  of purchase and use.   
4.1.5  Where the container is covered by a wrapper, the wrapper shall carry the necessary information or the 
label on the container shall be readily legible through the outer wrapper or not obscured by it.   
4.1.6  The name  of the desig nated product  and statements required by this standard  shall appear in a prominent 
position  and in close proximity to the brand name  and in the same field of vision.  
4.1.7  The font size of the all specific mandatory declarations and statements required by this standard  shall be  
not less than half of the font size of the largest word on the label  of the designated product . Notwithstanding th is 
requirement for half the size of largest word, t he minimum heigh t for the statement for food products shall not be 
less than  2.0 mm while that of other designated products such as feeding bottles , pacifiers and teats shall not be 
less than 1.5 mm  
4.1.8  Any label of a designated product not complying with any clause of this standard shall be deemed to have 
violated  this standard, BMS Act of 2012 of the laws of Kenya and its regulations.  
4.1.9 The age in which the product is recommended for use in numeric figures shall be declared  
4.1.10  A warning about the health risks of improper preparation and of using the product prio r to the 
recommended age shall be indicated  
4.2 Specific requirements  applicable to designated products generally  
4.2.1 Language of the label  
4.2.1.2  The language on the label of a designated product  shall be presented either in English or Kiswahili.  
4.2.1 .3 Where translation is done from any other foreign language or to local languages  other than English or 
Kiswahili , the information shall fully and accurately reflect that on the original label.  
4.2.2 Name of the designated product  
The name of the designat ed products shall be clear and in conformity with the relevant Kenya standard or the 
BMS  (Regulations and Control)  Act of 2012 of the Laws of Kenya  and its regulations . 
4.2.3 Identification of the manufacturer or distributor  
4.2.3.1 The label of a designat ed product shall identify  
a) Name , physical address  and detailed contact address of the manufacturer, packer or a distributor ; 
b) A declaration of the country of origin ; and  
c) Where a designated product undergoes processing in a second country, which changes its n ature , the 
country in which the processing is performed shall be considered as the country of origin for the 
purposes of labelling .  DKS 2775 : 201 7 
© KEBS 201 7— All rights reserved   5 4.2.3.2 In the event that a manufacturer or distributor changes any of the requirements in sub -clause 4.2.3.1, 
products bear ing such a label shall be recalled and relabelled in conformity to the changed aspects . 
4.3 Specific requirements applicable to designated food products  
4.3.1 List of ingredients  
a) The list of ingredients shall be headed or preceded by an appropriate title, which consists or includes the 
term ―ingredient‖;  
b) Except for single ingredient foods, a list of ingredients shall be declared on the label;  
c) All ingredients shall be listed in descending order of ingoing weight (m/m) at the time of the manufacture 
of the fo od; 
d) Where an ingredient is itself the product of two or more ingredients, such a compound ingredient may be 
declared, as such, in the list of ingredients provided that it is immediately accompanied by a list in 
brackets of its ingredients in desce nding ord er of proportion (m/m); and   
e) Any ingredient used including food additive s, where permitted , it shall be identified by its name and not 
its technological function  or group to which it belongs .  
4.3.2 Nutrition information  
a) The nutrition information shall be headed or preceded by an appropriate title, which consists or includes 
the term ―nutrition information‖;  
b) It shall have a list of all nutrients based on the composition or analysis of the product. The amount 
declared shall be either the actual levels or  average factory level but either case shall be within the limits 
of nutrients as provided in the relevant Kenya standard.  
c) The nutrient information shall be as specified in the relevant specifications of Kenya standards  
4.3.3 Net contents  and drained weight  
4.3.3.1 The net contents shall be declared in the metric system ("Systeme International" units)   
4.3.3.2 Declaration of the net content shall be in accordance with the Weights and Measure  law. The net 
contents shall be declared in the following manner:   
a) for liquid foods, by volume;  
b) for solid foods, by weight; and  
c) for semi -solid or viscous foods, either by weight or volume.  
4.3.3.3 In addition to the declaration of net contents, a designated product  in a liquid medium shall carry a  
declaration in the metr ic system of the drained weight of the food. For the purposes of this requirement,  liquid 
medium means water, aqueous solutions of sugar and salt, fruit and vegetable juices in canned fruits and 
vegetables only, or vinegar, either singly or in combination.   DKS 2775 : 201 7 
6  © KEBS 201 7— All rights reserved  4.3.4 Date marking and storage instruction   
4.3.4.1 The date of manufacture and expiry shall be indicated as required in relevant Kenya Standard s or Foods, 
drug and Chemical Substances Act Cap 254 of the laws of Kenya  
4.3.4.2 The manufacturer shall state  the optimal storage requirements that the product should be kept at the 
point of sale and at household level  that will ensure the product composition remains in compliance with the 
specifications of relevant Kenya standard s. 
4.3.5 Instruction for appropri ate preparation  
At the minimum, the following information shall be provided  
4.3.5.1  Illustration for use  on the label  shall be done by use of both  graphics and words . This may be done on 
the primary package of the designated food products or using an inser t to the primary package . 
4.3.5.2  Instructions for cleaning and sterilization in words and graphics . - equipments  
4.3.5.3  An advisory message  explaining that feeding with a cup is more hygienic than bottle feeding.  
4.3.5.4  A advisory caution  that children should not be left to self -feed for long periods of time because extended 
contact with sweetened liquids, including infant formula, may cause severe tooth decay  
4.3.5. 5 The label shall have caution  against the health hazards of inappropriate preparation . 
4.3.5.6 In the case of powdered  formulas, the following statements shall be included in the directions for 
appropriate use:  
a) Powdered formula may be contaminated with microorganisms during the manufacturing process or may 
become contaminated during preparati on; 
b) It is necessary for formula to be prepared one feed at a time using filtered water at above 70 degrees 
celsius; and  
c) Any unused milk shall be discarded immediately after every feed.  
4.3.6 Mandatory declarations and statements  on all designated food prod ucts  
4.3.6.1  The protein source for designated product shall be declared in in true form  e.g. ‗ source of protein is cow’s 
milk‘ 
4.3.6.1  The following statement s in bold and conspicuous characters  shall be indicated on the label in  position 
and font size a s described  in clause 4.1 of this standard : 
a) The words, ‗IMPORTANT NOTICE‘  in capital letters , followed immediately by a statement , "Breast milk 
is best. Breast milk is ideal for the healthy growth and development of infants and young children. It 
protects against diarrhoea and other illness ";  
b)  The words, ‗WARNING ‘ in capital letters followed immediately by a statement, "Before deciding to 
supplement or replace breastfeeding with this product, seek the advice of a health professional. It is  DKS 2775 : 201 7 
© KEBS 201 7— All rights reserved   7 important for yo ur baby's health that you follow all preparation instructions carefully. If you use a feeding 
bottle, your baby may refuse to feed from the breast. It is more hygienic to feed from the cup ". and 
c) Statement that the product should only be used on the advice of a health worker  
4.3.7 Specific prohibition  in a designated food product label  
The following shall not be allowed to be used on a label for designated food product:  
a) The container, label or insert shall not have pictures of infants  nor shall they have oth er pictures, text or 
graphics which may idealize the use of designated food product ; 
b) The term ‗humanized‘ or ‗mater nalized‘  or similar terms shall not be used ; and  
c) Designated food products labels including inserts shall not contain any health and nutrition  claims . 
4.3.8  Inks and adhesives  
Printing inks  and adhesives (where used)  on the labels shall not  contain harmful chemicals that may migrate into 
the food product  to present a hazard to the infant or young child.  
4.4 Specific requirements applicable to o ther designated products  
4.4.1  All designated products other than foods shall be manufactured and presented in a manner that does not 
present any health hazards to the infants and young children  by themselves or as a result of migration of harmful 
chemical  substances as a result of continued use  
4.4.2  All designated product shall be accompanied by a label describing how it should be used and cleaned 
including recommended temperatures  in words and /or graphics . This information may also be embossed on the 
product.  
4.4.3  Any ink used  in printing on a  designated product shall not contain  harmful substances to the health of the 
infants and young children . The ink shall not contain harmful substances that may migrate during the normal use 
of the product  
4.4.5  All retailers of designated product shall obtain  and maintain  a Declaration of Conformity (DOC) certificate 
from the manufacturer or suppliers  for each of the designated products.  
4.4.6  Designated products shall not be produced from reprocessed plastic materi als. In the event that it comes 
from reprocessed plastics, that company shall be certified  against ISO 22002 P art 4.