LAGOS, Nigeria(VOICE OF NAIJA)-The Nigerian Senate has announced plans to strengthen food safety laws and impose harsher penalties on individuals or businesses using toxic chemicals to ripen fruits, describing the practice as a public health emergency threatening millions of lives.
The move followed a report by the Senate Joint Committees on Health and Agriculture, chaired by Senator Ipalibo Banigo of PDP Rivers West, which exposed the alarming spread of unsafe food handling practices across the country.
According to the committee, investigations revealed that fruits such as bananas and mangoes are being force-ripened with calcium carbide, a substance containing arsenic and phosphorus, known to cause cancer, kidney failure, and liver disease.
The report also uncovered a disturbing range of hazardous food-handling practices across the country. It revealed that some vendors cook meat with paracetamol to make it tender, while others preserve grains using sniper (Dichlorvos), a toxic pesticide banned for domestic use.
In addition, fruits and vegetables are often washed with detergents to enhance their appearance, and banned Sudan IV dyes are added to palm oil and ground pepper to make them look more vibrant.
Even more alarming, the committee found that some processors use burning tyres to remove animal skins, exposing food to heavy metal contamination, while others soak cassava in detergent or hypo solution, posing severe risks to consumers.
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The Senate warned that these practices contribute to Nigeria’s rising cases of cholera, Lassa fever, and food-borne illnesses, with over 14,000 cholera cases and 378 deaths recorded in 2025 alone.
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that Nigeria suffers over one million food-borne illnesses annually, leading to economic losses exceeding $3.6 billion.
In response, lawmakers have resolved that the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), and the Nigerian Council of Food Science and Technology (NiCFOST) must ramp up public sensitization and nationwide enlightenment campaigns on the dangers of chemical ripening and other food adulteration practices.
“This issue is a public health crisis, not just a consumer rights concern. These acts undermine food safety, endanger lives, and must be stopped through effective legislation and strict enforcement,” the committee stated.
The Senate also directed regulatory agencies to enforce food safety laws more aggressively, noting that existing laws under Sections 243–245 of the Criminal Code already criminalize food adulteration but need to be updated with modern penalties and enforcement mechanisms.
Amid Nigeria’s battle with food-related health crises, the Senate’s renewed push signals a crucial step toward safeguarding families from toxic food practices, redefining how the nation protects what ends up on its people’s plates.
