Food Safety Guidelines: NAFDAC DG Tackles Nigerians, "You're Ignorant"
- NAFDAC Director-General Mojisola Adeyeye said most Nigerians are ignorant of food safety information and guidelines
- Adeyeye pointed to a 56% national illiteracy rate as a key reason why food safety messaging fails to reach many Nigerians
- The NAFDAC DG also said the agency receives over 200 complaints monthly, including 225 reports of suspected counterfeit products in August
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NAFDAC Director-General Mojisola Adeyeye has said most Nigerians do not read or engage with food safety information, citing widespread ignorance as a major challenge facing the agency's regulatory work.
Adeyeye made the remarks in an interview with BusinessDay published on Monday, where she discussed how multiple government agencies share responsibility for food safety across the supply chain.
Source: Twitter
"We are ignorant in this country. We are very ignorant, we don't read, we don't understand," she said, adding that a 56% illiteracy rate makes it difficult to communicate food safety guidelines to a large portion of the population.
Who regulates what
The NAFDAC chief explained that her agency's mandate covers only processed and semi-processed foods, while the Federal Ministry of Agriculture holds primary responsibility for fresh produce. "So the oranges you buy in the market, we don't control it," she said.
On the use of pesticides, Adeyeye said NAFDAC does play a regulatory role, since the agency controls pesticide use in Nigeria.
She said NAFDAC, working alongside the Ministry of Agriculture, trains farmers on correct pesticide application and advises on the appropriate time to harvest crops after spraying.
The agency's veterinary and allied products directorate also engages farmers and other stakeholders on the subject.
However, she acknowledged that the scale of Nigeria's farming population makes it impossible for NAFDAC to handle this training alone.
"We cannot go to one million farmers in Nigeria, NAFDAC cannot do that, it is the ministry of agriculture that should be doing that," Adeyeye said. She called on the ministry to take the lead in educating farmers, with NAFDAC continuing to provide support in its capacity as the pesticide regulator.
Over 200 complaints received monthly
On consumer feedback, Adeyeye said NAFDAC receives more than 200 complaints every month through its official complaint channels, and that these reports serve as useful leads for the agency's investigations.
She noted that in August alone, the agency received 225 complaints about suspected counterfeit products.
Source: Legit.ng
