As our nation observes Amerindian Heritage Month, the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) is placing the spotlight on Standards available for Indigenous products which are produced to help sustain the local economies of many Indigenous communities.
This year’s theme, “Many Voices, One Song. Celebrating Amerindian Heritage 2024”, resonates with GNBS’ commitment to ensuring that Indigenous traditions are preserved while they utilize standards to guide their production of food, art and craft products for sustainability.
In outlining the requirements, the available standards by far encapsulate the traditional knowledge, practices and craftsmanship of our Indigenous people and offer a benchmark for indigenous products to meet national, regional and internationally accepted quality.
Importantly, standards related to Indigenous food products help safeguard traditional recipes and methods of preparation, while also ensuring food safety and nutritional value.
Standards for indigenous products include the Specification for Cassava Bread, Specification for Indigenous Furniture (bamboo, rattan, wicker and nibbi), and the Code of Practice for Manufacture of Wooden Craft Items.
The following provides an overview of these standards:
The Specification for Cassava Bread (GYS 246:2010) specifies requirements for cassava bread and related products, intended for human consumption, obtained from the processing of bitter cassava. The standard offers guidance to makers of the product on quality requirements, contaminants, sampling, packaging, labelling, hygiene and production.
The Specification for indigenous furniture (GYS 509:2013) is a CARICOM Standard, which was adopted by the GNBS. The standard was developed to benefit manufacturers by the harmonization of requirements for the manufacture of various types of furniture, suitable for both domestic and commercial use. It covers material requirements, which are selected for bamboo, rattan, wicker, tibisiri and nibbi furniture and these shall be characterized by lightness, flexibility, durability and smoothness with no hair-like strands hanging from them. Based on the standard, indigenous furniture shall be constructed with good workmanship components which shall be of quality and uniformity; and the furniture shall remain stable in an upright position when empty.
Lastly, the Code of practice for manufacture of Wooden Craft items (GCP 31:2010) is also a CARICOM Standard, which establishes the minimum requirements for the manufacture and production of wooden craft items. The standard is focused on performance rather than prescriptive requirements and may be applied to all wooden craft items in the manufacturing stage or at the point of sale to retailers and end consumers. The standard stipulates requirements for materials used in manufacture including wood, adhesives, finishes or finishing material, and hardware. It also includes health, safety, storage, environmental, packaging, and labelling requirements.
As a nation, we must be appreciative of the contributions made by our Indigenous people to our cultural and economic fabric, from traditional crafts and artisanal products to sustainable agricultural practices. Standards are useful tools for guiding the production and advancement of Indigenous products, ensuring they meet quality requirements while maintaining authenticity.
As we celebrate Amerindian Heritage Month 2024, the GNBS takes this opportunity to recognize three local manufacturers; Sandflower Products, Marcia’s Products and Luke’s Manufacturing whose locally made cassava bread and cassava cassareep are GNBS Made in Guyana Certified.
The GNBS invites all stakeholders to join this mission to ensure the contributions of our Indigenous people are celebrated and their products recognized. The Bureau will continue to do so through the development and promotion of standards.
For further information, please contact our GNBS Standardisation Department on 219-0064-66 or visit our standards portal: gnbsguy.com
