8th June, 2019
The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health, Mr Abdullahi Mashi, said at a news conference to mark the 2019 World Food Safety Day in Abuja that the Federal Government has empowered the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to undertake more effectively its mandate in the regulation of processed and packaged foods in the country.
Mashi who disclosed that the theme for this year’s celebration is: ”Food Safety, Everyone’s Business”, added that food remains an essential part of our daily life.
He said that everyone eats at least one meal a day, ranging from fruits, vegetables to carbohydrates and proteins.
He noted that a lot of times, the foods we eat give us symptoms like stomach pain, vomiting or high fever.
He explained that most times, these pains could just be mild discomforts which could also lead to rapid hospitalisation and even death.
He however said that the food we eat must be safe, wholesome and nutritious.
He stated that high risk foods such as ready-to-eat foods, foods of animal origin and spices could contain harmful bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances, due to unsafe food handling practices, adding that unsafe foods have also been said to lead to yearly productivity losses of about $95 billion in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC).
