About 200,000 Nigerians, many of them children, die each year due to foodborne diseases, the Federal Government has revealed, prompting the launch of a new operational manual aimed at curbing the deadly trend.
The Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Uche Geoffrey Nnaji, disclosed the alarming figure during the launch of the Food Safety Operational Manual for Food Business Operators, Market and Street Food Vendors on Thursday in Abuja.
Quoting statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO), Nnaji said over 600 million people globally fall ill each year due to contaminated food, with Africa suffering the highest per capita burden. He noted that Nigeria alone loses an estimated $3.6 billion annually from food-related diseases due to productivity losses, medical costs, and trade disruptions.
According to the minister, the newly launched manual is a science-based guide tailored for local government food inspectors and food safety desk officers, particularly those monitoring informal food environments such as open markets, roadside food kiosks, and street vendors.
“These are the very spaces where Nigerians across all income levels turn to for their daily meals—and where risk is often greatest,” Nnaji said. “From the unethical use of paracetamol to tenderise meat, to cassava fermentation with detergents, and adulteration of red oil and pepper with industrial dyes like Sudan IV, we are witnessing a quiet war against public health.”
He emphasised that such harmful practices are criminal offences under Sections 243 and 244 of Nigeria’s Criminal Code, with severe consequences ranging from kidney failure and liver cirrhosis to cancers and other chronic illnesses.
Nnaji also disclosed that in the first quarter of 2025 alone, Nigeria recorded 378 deaths from cholera and over 3,500 Lassa fever infections—many of them linked to contaminated food sources.
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“This must stop. And this manual is a significant step toward ensuring it does,” he declared.
Also speaking at the event, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, represented by Adeola Olufowobi-Yusuf, cited a Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) study, which found that nearly 20% of hospital admissions in urban areas stem from foodborne illnesses.
He noted that the ministry has been developing national food safety guidelines in collaboration with state governments to ensure every community can implement effective safety protocols.
Adding her voice, the CEO of the Nigerian Council for Food Science and Technology (NiCFoST), Nkechi Veronica Ezeh, described the manual as the first of its kind in Nigeria. She said it fills a critical gap by providing detailed regulatory guidance for ensuring safer food practices at the grassroots level—covering markets, restaurants, bakeries, and other food-selling spots.
The policy, she stressed, aligns with Chapter 8 of the Fourth Schedule of Nigeria’s Constitution, which mandates local governments to play a central role in maintaining public health and sanitation, including regulating food outlets.
With this new manual, stakeholders hope to reduce the country’s high rate of foodborne disease and build a stronger, safer food ecosystem for all Nigerians.