MORE than 200,000 Nigerians die annually from food poisoning caused by food contamination during food processing and preservation.
Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Science and Technology, Mr Birtus Bako Nabasu, disclosed this at the opening ceremony of a day workshop on Food Safety for the staff of the ministry, held in Nasarawa State.Â
He was represented by the Director, Chemical Technology Department, Mr Oyefeso Akinyemi Â
According to him, 90, 000 cases of foodborne diseases are recorded in Nigeria annually. This statistics made it urgent for appropriate authorities such as the Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON) and National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to pay greater attention to food safety matter.
He said that this ministry was committed to partnering with relevant stakeholders in the provision of scientific evidence-based data which would be useful in the elaboration of food standards by local and global food standards-setting bodies.
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The permanent secretary then urged participants at the workshop to henceforth serve as food safety champions in their various domains.
Earlier, the Director of Health and Biomedical Science Department, Mr David Erphabahimu said everyone has a special role to play in ensuring that the food consumed by Nigerians was free from contamination.
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