14 October 2008
Lagos — NATIONAL Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has taken its campaign against food poisoning to Ogun State, seeking the cooperation of stakeholders.
The Director General, Prof. Dora Akunyili, was represented at the occasion by the State Director of NAFDAC, Mrs. Adetola Adegoke.
She said that the campaign became necessary in view of the apprehension shown in some states like Yobe and Cross River over food poisoning arising from the consumption of a beans product like moi-moi.
"It has become a serious health problem which must be addressed so that it does not become like the fake drug incidence which killed millions of Nigerians."
She told the participants, which included agric extension workers, farmers, grain merchants and other members of the public, that the campaign was to enlighten the public about agrochemical uses.
Akunyili further said the campaign was also aimed at forestalling food poisoning in the process of preservation.
She advised the people on how to handle agrochemical, stating: "The hazardous nature of pesticides and toxicity makes it mandatory to ensure safety in its use".
Akunyili listed more than 30 banned and restricted pesticides.
She solicited the support of the agric extension workers in ensuring that only registered agrochemical were used.
In his remarks, Chief Kolawole Ijaduoye, Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Ogun Chapter, commended NAFDAC for embarking on the sensitisation programme.
"What was revealed to us today is very strange and we indeed appreciate it because it directly affects the farmers," he added.
Ijaduoye, however, urged the agency to take the campaign further to the grass roots.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Daily Champion. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
