FINAL DRAFT UGANDA 
STANDARD  
  FDUS EAS 758
First Edition
2011-mm-dd
 
 Reference numbe r
FDUS EAS 758: 2011
© UNBS 2011
  
Finger millet grains — Specification 
 FDUS EAS 758: 2011 
i i                 ©  U N B S  2011 - 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 2011 
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 758: 2011 
© UNBS  2011 - 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 758: 2011 , Finger millet grains  — Specification, is identical 
with and has been reproduced from an East  African Standard, EAS 758: 2011 , Finger millet grains  — 
Specification,  and is being proposed for adoption as a Uganda Standard.  
This standard was developed by the Food and agricu lture Standards Technical Committee (UNBS/TC 2).  
Wherever the words, “East Africa Standard" appear, they should be replaced by "Uganda Standard."  EAS 758:2011
ICS 67.060
 
© EAC 2011 First Edition 2011  
 
      
EAST AFRICAN STANDARD 
 
Finger millet grains — Specification  
 
 
 
  
 
   
 
  
 
 
 
 
  
 
  
 
   
 
  
EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY  
HS 1008.20.00 [HS 1008.20.39] EAS 758:2011  
 
Foreword 
 
Development of the East African Standards ha s 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 Comm unity will be removed.  
 In order to meet the above objectives, the EAC Partner States have enacted an East African 
Standardization, Quality Assurance, Metrology an d Test Act, 2006 (EAC SQMT Act, 2006) to make 
provisions for ensuring standardization, quality as surance, 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 formulat ed in accordance with the proc edures established by the East 
African Standards Committee. The East Afri can Standards Committee 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, t ogether with the representatives from the private 
sectors and consumer organizations. Draft East African Standards are circ ulated to stakeholders 
through the National Standards Bodies in the Pa rtner States. The comments received are discussed 
and incorporated before finalization of standards, in accordance with the procedures of the 
Community.  
 
Article 15(1) of the EAC SQMT Act, 2006 provides t hat “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 nationa l 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 that they  always have the latest versions of 
the standards they are implementing.  
 
© East African Community 2011 — 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  
 
 
  
 
 
                                                 
* © 2011 EAC — All rights of exploitation in any form and by an y means reserved worldwide for EAC Partner States’ NSBs.  
 
ii © EAC 2011 — All rights reserved EAS 758:2011  
Introduction 
 
 
This standard has been developed to take into account: 
 
⎯ the needs of the market for the product;  
 
⎯ the need to facilitate fair domestic, regional and international trade and prevent technical barriers 
to trade by establishing a common trading language for buyers and sellers. 
 
⎯ the structure of the CODEX, UNECE, USA, ISO and other internat ionally significant standards; 
 
⎯ the needs of the producers in gaining knowle dge of market standards, conformity assessment, 
commercial cultivars and crop production process; 
 
⎯ the need to transport the product in a manner that  ensures keeping of quality until it reaches the 
consumer; 
 
⎯ the need for the plant protection authority to certif y, through a simplified form, that the product is 
fit for cross-border and international trade without carrying plant disease vectors; 
© EAC 2011 — All rights reserved iii EAS 758:2011  
iv © EAC 2011 — All rights reserved  
Contents 
 
1 Scope  .............................................................................................................................. 1  
2 Normative references  ..................................................................................................... 1  
3 Terms and Definitions .................................................................................................... 2  
4 Quality Requirements  .................................................................................................... 2  
4.1 General requirements  ................................................................................................. 2  
4.2 Specific requirements ................................................................................................. 3  
4.2.1 Grading ......................................................................................................................... 3  
4.2.2 Ungraded finger millet  .................................................................................................. 3  
4.2.3 Reject grade finger millet ........................................................................................... 3  
5 Contaminants  ................................................................................................................. 4  
5.1 Heavy metals  .............................................................................................................. 4  
5.2 Pesticide residues  ....................................................................................................... 4  
5.3 Mycotoxin  limits  ....................................................................................................... 4  
6 Hygiene  .......................................................................................................................... 5  
7 Packaging  ....................................................................................................................... 5  
8 Marking or labelling  ...................................................................................................... 5  
9 Sampling  ........................................................................................................................ 6  
 EAS 758:2011  EAST AFRICAN STANDARD 
 
Finger millet grains — Specification  
 
1 Scope 
 
This East African Standard specifies the require ments and methods of sampling and test for finger 
millet grains of varietie s (cultivars) grown from Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertner intended for human 
consumption, i.e., ready for its intended use as  human food, presented in packaged form or sold 
loose from the package directly to the consumer . It does not apply to other products derived from 
finger millet grains. 
 
2 Normative references 
 The following normative documents contain provisions which, through reference in this text constitute 
provisions of this East African Standard  ISO 605 , Pulses — Determination of impurities, size, foreign odours, insects, and species and variety 
— Test methods 
 
ISO 711, Cereals and cereal products — Determination of moisture content (Basic reference method)  
 
ISO 712 , Cereals and cereal products — Determinati on of moisture content — Routine reference 
method 
 
ISO 5223, Test sieves for cereals  
 
ISO 6639-1, Cereals and pulses — Determination of hidden insect infestation — Part 1: General 
principles  
 ISO 6639-2, Cereals and pulses — Determination of hidden insect infestation — Part 2: Sampling  
 ISO 6639-3, Cereals and pulses — Determination of hidden insect infestation — Part 3: Reference 
method  
 ISO 6639-4, Cereals and pulses — Determination of hi dden insect infestation — Part 4: Rapid 
methods  
 
ISO 13690, Cereals, pulses and milled products — Sampling of static batches  
 
ISO 16050,  Foodstuffs — Determination of aflatoxin B 1, and the total content of aflatoxin B 1, B2, G 1 
and G 2 in cereals, nuts and derived products  — High performance liquid chromatographic method 
 EAS 38, Labelling of pre-packaged foods — Specification  
 
EAS 79, Cereals and pulses as grain — Methods of sampling  
 
EAS 217, Methods for the microbiol ogical examination of foods 
 
EAS 39, Code of Hygiene Practice in Food and Drink Manufacturing Industry 
 CODEX Stan 193, Codex general Standards for contaminants and toxins in Food and Feed  
 
 
  
 
  
 
© EAC 2011 — All rights reserved  1 EAS 758:2011  
3 Terms and Definitions 
 
For the purpose of this East African Stan dard, the following definitions shall apply. 
 
3.1 
finger millet grain 
 
dried grain having the characteristics of the species Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertner  
 
3.2 
whole grains 
grains of finger millet obtained after proper threshing with no mechanical treatment 
 
3.3 
foreign matter all organic and inorganic material other than sor ghum, broken kernels, other grains and filth.  
Foreign matter includes loose sorghum seed coats. 
 3.4 other edible grains 
any edible grains (including oil seeds) ot her than the one which is under consideration  
 
3.5 damaged grains 
grains that are sprouted or internally damaged as  a result of heat, microbe, moisture or weather 
 
3.6 
immature and shrivelled grains 
grains that are not properly developed 
 
3.7 
weevilled grains 
grains that are partially or wholly bored by insects injurious to grains but does not include germ eaten 
grains and egg spotted grains 
 
3.8 
poisonous, toxic and/or harmful seeds 
any seed which if present in quantities above pe rmissible limit may have damaging or dangerous 
effect on health, organoleptic properties or te chnological performance such as Jimson weed — 
Datura ( D. fastuosa  Linn and D. stramonium  Linn.) corn cokle ( Agrostemma githago  L., Machai 
Lallium remulenum  Linn.) Akra (Vicia species), Argemone mexicana, Khesari and other seeds that 
are commonly recognized as harmful to health 
 
4 Quality Requirements 
 
4.1 General requirements 
 
4.1.1 Finger millet shall meet the following general requirements/limits as determined using the 
relevant standards listed in Clause 2: 
 
a) shall be the dried mature grains of Eleusine coracana (L.) Gaertner;  
 
b) shall be hard, clean, wholesome, uniform in  size, colour and in sound merchantable condition; 
 
c) shall be safe and suitable for human consumption; 
 
d) shall be free from abnormal flavours,  obnoxious smell and discolouration.  
 
e) shall be free from micro-organisms and substanc es originating from micro-organisms or other 
poisonous or deleterious substances in amounts that may constitute a hazard to human health. 
2 © EAC 2011 — All rights reserved EAS 758:2011  
 
4.1.2 Finger millet grains shall be in form of well-filled seeds of uniform colour. 
 
4.2 Specific requirements 
 
4.2.1 Grading 
 
Finger millet shall be graded into th ree grades on the basis of the tolerable limits established in Table 
1 which shall be additional to the general requirements set out in this standard. 
 4.2.2 Ungraded finger millet 
 
Shall be finger millet which do not fall within the requ irements of Grades 1, 2, and 3 of this standard 
but are not rejected finger millet. 
 
Note: For Tanzania and Burundi this requirement shall not apply.  
 4.2.3 Reject grade finger millet 
 
This comprises finger millet grains which have obje ctionable odour, off flavour, living insects or which 
do not possess the quality characterist ics specified in Table 1. They ca nnot satisfy the conditions of 
ungraded finger millet grains and shall be classified as reject finger millet grains and shall be 
condemned as unfit for human consumption. 
  
 
© EAC 2011 — All rights reserved  3 EAS 758:2011  
 
Table 1 — Specific requirements 
 
Characteristic Grade Method of test 
1 2 3 
Foreign matter, whole grains, 
% by mass, max. Organic 0.25 0.50 0.75  
ISO 605 Inorganic 0.10 0.25 0.25 
Other edible grains, % by mass, max. 1.5 2.0 4.0 
Damaged grain, % by mass, max.   2.0 3.0 5.0 
Immature and shrivelled, % by mass, max.  3.0 4.0 4.0 
Weevilled grains per cent by count 0.2 0.3 0.5 
Moisture content 12.0 13.0 14.0 ISO 711/712 
Crude protein, % by dry mass basis, min 8.0 EAS 82 
Ergot affected grains %m/m 0.05 EAS 82 
1000 Kernel weight, g    
 Whole millet grains 5.0 to 10.0 Undefined 
 Decorticated millet grains  4.0 to 8.0 Undefined 
1 litre weight, g 750 to 820 Undefined 
Decortication %m/m max 20 Undefined 
Fat content, % by dry mass basis 3.5 to 6.0 ISO 5986 
Tannin content, % by mass, max.   0.5   ISO 9648 
Crude fibre, % by dry mass basis: 3.0 to 4.5 ISO 5498 
Total Aflatoxin (AFB1+AFB2+AFG1 +AFG2)), 
ppb max 10 ISO 16050 
Aflatoxin B1 only, ppb max 5 
Fumonisin ppm max 2 
NOTE Foreign matter is mineral or organic matter (dust, twigs, seedc oats, seeds of other species, dead insects, 
fragments, or remains of insects, other impurities of anima l origin). Finger millet grains shall have not more than 1% 
extraneous matter of which not more than 0.25% shall be mineral matter and not more than 0.10% shall be dead insects, 
fragments or remains of insects, and/ or other impurities of animal origin. 
 
 
5 Contaminants 
 5.1 Heavy metals 
 Finger millet grains shall comply with those maxi mum limits for heavy meta ls established by the 
Codex Alimentarius Commission for this commodity.   
5.2 Pesticide residues 
 Finger millet grains shall comply with those maximum pesticid e residue limits established by the 
Codex Alimentarius Commission for this commodity.  
 
Note: where the use of certain pesticides  is prohibited by some Partner Stat es, then it shall be notified to all 
Partner States accordingly. 
 
5.3 Mycotoxin  limits 
 
Finger millet grains shall comply with those maximum mycotoxin limits established by the Codex Alimentarius Commission for this commodity. In particula r, total aflatoxin levels in finger millet grains 
4 © EAC 2011 — All rights reserved EAS 758:2011  
for human consumption shall not exceed 10 µg/kg (ppb) with B 1  not exceeding 5 µg/kg (ppb) when 
tested according to ISO 16050. 
 
6 Hygiene 
 6.1 Finger millet shall be produced, prepared and h andled in accordance with the provisions of 
appropriate sections of EAS 39  
 
6.2 When tested by appropriate standards of samp ling and examination listed in Clause 2, the 
products: 
 
⎯ shall be free from microorganisms in amounts which may represent a hazard to health and shall 
not exceed the limits stipulated in Table 2; 
 
⎯ shall be free from parasites which may represent a hazard to health; and 
 
⎯ shall not contain any substance originating from  microorganisms in amounts which may represent 
a hazard to health. 
 
Table 2 — Microbiological limits  
 
 Type of micro-organism Limits Test method 
i)  Yeasts and moulds, max. per g 104  
 
EAS 217  
 ii) S.aureus  per 25 g Not 
detectable
iii) E. Coli , max. per g Not 
detectable
iv) Salmonella, max. per 25 g  Not 
detectable
 
 
7 Packaging 
 
7.1 Finger millet grains shall be packed in gunny bags/jute bags, poly woven bags, poly pouches, 
cloth bags or other suitable packages which shall be clean, sound, free from insect, fungal infestation and the packing material shall be of food grade quality. 
 7.2 Finger millet grains shall be packed in containers which will safeguard the hygienic, 
nutritional, technological and organoleptic qualities of the products.  7.3 The containers, including packaging material, shall be made of substances which are safe 
and suitable for their intended use. They shall not impart any toxic substance or undesirable odour or 
flavour to the product. 
 
7.4 Each package shall contain finger millet grai ns of the same type and of the same grade 
designation. 
 
7.5 If finger millet grains are presented in bags, the bags shall also be free of pests and 
contaminants  
  7.6  Each package shall be securely closed and sealed. 
 
 
8 Marking or labelling 
 8.1 In addition to the requirements in EAS 38, each  package shall be legibl y and indelibly marked 
with the following: 
 
i) product name as “Whole Finger Millet Grai ns” or “Decorticated Finger Millet Grains; 
© EAC 2011 — All rights reserved  5 EAS 758:2011  
6 © EAC 2011 — All rights reserved  
ii) variety; 
 
iii) grade;  
iv) name, address and physical locati on of the producer/ packer/importer; 
 
v) lot/batch/code number; 
 
vi) net weight, in kg;   
Note: EAC partner states are signatory to the International Labour Organizations (ILO) for maximum package weight of 50kg 
where human loading and offloading is involved. 
 
vii) the declaration “Food for Human Consumption’’; 
 viii) storage instruction as “Store in a c ool dry place away from any contaminants’’; 
 ix) crop year;  
x) packing date; 
 xi) instructions on disposal of used package; 
 
xii) country of origin;  
xiii) a declaration on whether the finger millet was genetically modified or not. 
 
9 Sampling 
 
Sampling shall be done in accordance with the EAS 79/ISO 13690 
 EAS 758:2011  
 
 
 
  
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
  
 
  
 
  
 
  
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
  
 
  
 
  
 
  
 
© EAC 2011 — All rights reserved