CONSUMER HEALTH IS EVERYONE’S RESPONSIBILITY
As a stakeholder and a food safety advocate in the informal food markets, FOODDOTCOMACADEMY and the Association for Promotion of Food Safety and Improved Nutrition (APFSAN) are solidly behind the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) in its sensitization and awareness program against unwholesome practices by some unscrupulous Nigerian on forceful ripening of fruits, grains, and other farm produce.
I tried unsuccessfully to imagine what goes on in the minds of people involved in these shady, unprofessional and ungodly practice of forceful ripening of fruits, and unwholesome adulteration of palm oil and selling of contaminated meats dipped in blood of freshly slaughtered cows to make it look fresh to unsuspecting buyers, forgetting that there are health implications of their nefarious acts, because these adulterated products are very hazardous to the human body.
Some food vendors artificially ripen fruits with the aid of calcium carbide, a process that has been described by health experts as unhealthy and dangerous to health. Using chemicals to ripened fruits is harmful to the body since it’s carcinogenic and can damage our digestive systems, cause stomach ache and diarrhea and ultimately affect the entire body systems, leading to a lot of discomfort. And to some people adding artificial colours to palm oil or flavours which will ultimately lower the quality of that food though more profit will be made from selling such substandard products to the public but a lot of people will die from what we have deceitfully sold to them and some will have allergic reactions in their bodies and other body parts can be damaged.
By now, consuming unsafe, poor quality and substandard products which are known to be hazardous to human body should be a thing of the past if stiff penalties are handed down to culprits after much persuasion. I wiII applaud the Acting Executive Vice-Chairman (EVC) of FCCPC, Dr. Adamu Ahmed Abdullahi and his team for spearheading this well-timed campaign and I want other stakeholders and CSOs to join this campaign.
Consumer health is everyone’s responsibility and should not be left alone in the hands of government agencies like FCCPC, LASCOPA, etc.
FoodpreneurNews is a publication of the Foodpreneurs Publishing Company.
Email: [email protected]
Call/WhatsApp line: +234-7059549741
