Digital Food Safety and Trade Services (DiFSATS)

WHY DiFSATS WAS ESTABLISHED

Digital Food Safety and Trade Services (DiFSATS) Limited is a private company established under the companies Act 2012. It was established to play a catalytic role in the digitization of food safety and SPS measures in Africa which are critical to achieve sustained compliance with regional and international standards required for market access.

The founding of DiFSATS is grounded in understanding that a digital revolution is currently taking place but there is a fear that Africa might be left behind by the rest of the world as it happened during the green revolution and Industrial revolution. Whereas Africa has been trying to keep place with digitalization in sectors like telecommunication, finance and banking, Insurance and to a little extent in trade, limited if any effort has been made in the areas of food safety, SPS and standardization. This poses a major challenge of market access by agri-food business operators in Africa because all innovations in food safety, SPS and Standardization being undertaken in relevant international for a such as IPPC, OiE, CODEX are promoting digitization to enhance cooperation in food safety and SPS control and management and standards compliance.

Therefore, DiFSATS comes to fill the gaps by developing and supporting the use of digital facilities and tools to improve the efficiency and outcomes of food safety management and control and initiatives in Africa.

VISION

Becoming a continental catalyzing Hub for the use of Digital facilities and tools to improve the efficiency and outcomes of food safety, SPS and standardization in Africa for increased trade compliance, market access and consumer safety.

MISSION

To continuously identify the pain points; develop and support use of suitable digital innovations, facilities and tools to address challenges faced by the farmers, agro-food value chain actors, exporters and Importers, regulators and consumers in Uganda, across Africa regarding food safety, SPS measures and trade compliance.

HOW DiFSATS IS IMPROVING EFFICIENCY AND OUTCOMES OF FOOD SAFETY AND SPS MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL; AND STANDARDIZATION INITIATIVES.

1. Digitizing small holder dominated agro-food sector to streamline supply chains, enhance documentation and achieve traceability required by export markets
2. Digitizing food safety management system to control food hazards on routine basis in agro-food processing SMEs.
3. Digitizing food safety and SPS official controls of competent authorities to guarantee safety of products, improve confidence and trust of markets and consumers in official controls to promote equivalence and mutual recognition of inspection and certification system by trade partners
4. Digitizing cross border inspection, sampling and certification to promote risk-based controls, improve efficiency, reduce costs and delays in clearing of food traded across borders

OUR CORE VALUES

1. Honesty
2. Commitment to Serve
3. Professionalism
4. Transparency
5. Confidentiality

SCOPE OF WORK AND VALUE PREPOSITION

DiFSATS offers services in four categories:

1. Digital Solutions for Compliance:Developing tools for SPS and standards compliance, including Digital Certification, Traceability systems, and Risk assessment platforms.
2. Food Safety Monitoring:Creating platforms for real-time monitoring of temperature control, pest control, and hygiene practices.
3. Trade Facilitation:Building solutions that streamline cross-border trade by simplifying SPS documentation, inspections, and approvals.
4. Capacity Building and Coordination:Offering training programs and building platforms for information sharing and collaboration among stakeholders.

HOW WE DO OUR WORK

1. Building Traceability Systems:Using Blockchain or IoT for farm-to-fork product tracking.
2. Compliance Management:Providing tools for businesses to manage SPS documentation and for regulators to guarantee food safety.
3. Data Analysis:Offering insights into food safety trends, risks, and compliance levels.
4. Ensuring Mobile Accessibility:Creating mobile-enabled platforms to facilitate digital penetration.
5. Enabling E-Learning and E-Certification:Developing remote training, inspection, and certification packages.

PARTNERSHIPS (PARTNERS, CLIENTS, COLLABORATIONS) THAT WE SEEK TO IMPLEMENT THE ABOVE

We collaborate with governments, MDAs, private sector organizations, NGOs, and international bodies (e.g., EAC, AU, AfCFTA, FAO, WTO) to integrate our platforms with existing systems. We aim to leverage partnerships with entities like the World Bank. EU and USAID for funding and technical support.

TECHNOLOGY WE LEVERAGE

• AI: To predict food safety risks and optimize compliance.
• Blockchain: For transparency and trust in the supply chain.
• IoT Sensors: For real-time monitoring of storage and transportation.
• Cloud Computing: For scalable deployment across Africa.

CURRENT FOCUS AND DOMAIN KNOWLEDGE
We are currently building platforms for SPS certification, traceability, trade facilitation, and capacity building. Our expertise is grounded in:
a)  Food Safety and SPS Measures

1. b) Agriculture Value Chain dynamics
2. c) Regional and continental integration
   d) Regional and International Trade agreements (AfCFTA, WTO)

HOW TO WORK WITH US
We collaborate with Government MDAs, private sector organizations, and development partners to provide simplification solutions. We can partner to develop traceability and certification systems or support individual businesses with efficiency-enhancing tools.

Stakeholders can contact us to discuss how we can add value to different food safety and SPS implementation endeavors.

For further information
Location: Plot 1806, Block 215 Kondogolo zone, Kulambiro, Ntinda, Kampala, P.O Box 180755

Contact Us: Tel: +256 393-100655 | Mob: +256 78047753

Email: difssat@gmail.com

Please contact us for a discussion on how we can help to add value in your food safety, SPS and standards implementation endeavors.