FG Raises Alarm Over Use Of Chemicals To Ripen Fruits, Soften Meat

The federal government has actually raised issues over making use of hazardous chemicals in food processing and conservation in Nigeria, alerting versus practices such as utilizing calcium carbide to ripen fruits, paracetamol to soften meat and cleaning agents in cassava processing.

The Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Dr Kingsley Udeh, likewise recognized the treatment of beans and grains with unauthorised chemicals and the adulteration of palm oil with restricted colourants such as Sudan IV as harmful practices threatening public health.

Udeh spoke on Tuesday in Abuja at an occasion marking the 2026 World Science Day for Peace and Development, themed “Common Ground Through Science Diplomacy.”

He explained hazardous food handling, scams and adulteration as major nationwide issues, stating they exposed customers to damaging compounds and unclean processing techniques.

He stated, “Indeed, risky food handling, food scams, and adulteration have actually ended up being major nationwide issues, exposing customers to damaging chemicals or unclean processing and inappropriate conservation practices.”

Noting a few of the harmful practices, the minister stated, “Other reported risky practices, that include ripening fruit with calcium carbide, dealing with beans and grains with, utilizing paracetamol to soften meat, using cleaning agents or whitening representatives throughout cassava processing, and adulterating palm oil with forbidden colourants such as Sudan IV, have actually ended up being extensive practices with consuming health effects.”

He alerted that such practices threatened lives, damaged customer self-confidence and jeopardized food security.

“These practices definitely threaten lives, weaken customer self-confidence, and compromise food security. Food needs to sustain life, not threaten it,” he stated.

Pointing out figures credited to the World Health Organisation, Udeh stated about 866 million individuals worldwide suffered foodborne health problems every year, leading to around 1.52 million deaths, consisting of 143,000 kids under 5.

He included that foodborne diseases cost the international economy an approximated $310bn each year, while risky food might trigger more than 200 illness.

In Nigeria, he stated, health authorities approximated that about 50 million foodborne diseases and more than 53,000 associated deaths were tape-recorded yearly.

To deal with the issue, Udeh revealed strategies to enhance food security keeping track of through the release of certified food science and innovation specialists, especially at the city government level.

He stated the federal government would help with the facility of an expert cadre for food science and innovation professionals in the general public service to guarantee skilled professionals were associated with food examination, processing and quality assurance.

The minister regreted that Nigeria was not properly using its offered knowledge in spite of producing about 3,000 food science and innovation specialists every year from roughly 70 tertiary organizations.

He stated, “With all of these trained hands and experts, we still are not where we ought to remain in regards to food security and food handling practices since we’re not yet efficiently making use of these hands, especially in the general public service, since it’s been constrained by a lack of a recognized expert cadre.”

He vowed to help with engagements towards developing the cadre, including that the procedure would include workers audits and skills-gap analysis.

Udeh prompted food services and regulative organizations to engage competent experts in food production, quality control, processing and storage. He likewise got in touch with inspectors to validate professionals’ expert registration and legitimate yearly practice licences.

He stated the Nigerian Council of Food Science and Technology, developed by an Act of the National Assembly in 2019, was accountable for managing the occupation.

The minister likewise advised city governments to embrace the council’s food security functional handbook, established for food company operators, market traders and street-food suppliers, to enhance tracking in markets, dining establishments, abattoirs and other food outlets.

On native innovation, Udeh stated the ministry was promoting in your area industrialized devices for more secure food processing, conservation, storage and product packaging. These consist of enhanced fish-smoking kilns, solar clothes dryers, grain storage systems, cassava-processing devices and food-grade grinding makers.

He determined the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi, as one of the companies producing such devices, including that the ministry was likewise promoting shared neighborhood processing centers to support small operators.

The minister particularly recognized garri product packaging as a location needing attention, keeping in mind that the item was frequently shown in open containers and exposed to dust, bugs and unclean handling.

He stated suitable product packaging innovations would help in reducing contamination and protect food quality without enforcing extreme expenses on small traders.

Udeh even more revealed strategies to assemble a nationwide food systems stakeholders’ conference within the next one to 2 months to reinforce coordination amongst federal government organizations and gamers throughout the food worth chain.