Business

Over 200 firms register for barcode

AT least 2,800 products in the local market have so far registered for a national barcode since the establishment of the technology in the country last year.

Global Standard 1 (GS1) Chief Executive Officer Fatuma Kange said in Dar es Salaam on Thursday that there has been a positive response from the firms but awareness programmes were still needed to educate the general public on the importance of the barcodes in their products.

According to Mrs Kange, 190 companies have registered and are currently using the national barcode while others are expected to join after ending their contracts in other countries. The GS1 Barcode Executive Mabamba Maregesi said that the country has been loosing more than 125m/- yearly for using Kenya barcodes while more than 50 firms have registered to GS South Africa and more than 40 companies to the rest of the world.

He said the company was lacking funds to run awareness programmes across the country to enable businesses understand the importance of the technology. Among the benefits of barcodes, he said the barcode would enable products to compete in the international market, expand revenues and increase production, “Many products fail to penetrate in the international market and
others lack space in the local market because they have no barcodes.”