The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has arrested the merchants of dangerous chemicals used in food and drinks supposedly to enhance taste that killed three people in Kano.
The agency’s Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, made this known in a statement issued by Mr. Olusayo Akintola, the NAFDAC Resident Media Consultant on Sunday in Abuja.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that three people died in Kano in March after consuming the flavored drink, allegedly containing the chemical additives.
The NAFDAC chief, therefore, warned against adding chemicals or additives to food and drinks to enhance taste, stressing that such practice could result in severe illness and even death.
Adeyeye said the agency would stop at nothing to ensure that only safe food and other regulated products were available in the market for consumption and use.
She said that the preliminary result of the agency’s investigation of the victims had been submitted to Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State during her two-day visit to the state to assess the incident.
She noted that “it was heartwarming that merchants of the deadly chemicals and additives had been apprehended while the further investigation continued.”
According to her, the importance of food cannot be over-emphasized and that when dangerous foreign elements find their way into foods and water, it becomes poisonous rather than being nutritious.
She pointed out that food contamination and poisoning could occur through consuming expired food or preparing food with poorly sourced water and putting cooked food on the shelf for several days or months.
