The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, has threatened to shut down all bakeries in the country.
NAFDAC threatened a nationwide clampdown on producers of bread and other confectioneries over ‘illegal and unhygienic’ practices against food safety standards.
The Director-General of NAFDAC, Professor Christianah Adeyeye issued the warning at the One-Day workshop for Bread Producers on “Bread Quality and Safety Standards” in Lagos.
The Agency noted that despite the ban on the use of potassium bromate in baking, many Nigerian bakers have continued the nefarious act at the detriment of the health of Nigerians.
NAFDAC also issued a three-week ultimatum to bakers to comply with its guidelines or risk shut down of their facilities, adding that potassium bromate has the capacity to cause cancer.
Adeyeye who handed over the warning in Lagos announced that the Agency has begun an awareness seminar across the six geopolitical zones of the country as a build-up to the nationwide clampdown exercise.
“Most of the bakeries are infested with rats. We know how dangerous these rats can be. Again, some of them now put few tablets of potassium bromate in their pockets even when you come for an inspection you will not find them because they hide them in their homes and come with few tablets in their pockets.
” This has necessitated the need for the agency to collaborate with good hygiene practices through frequent workshops and grassroots sensitisation activities. The illegal use of dough improvers like potassium bromate, a potential carcinogen in bread has been of food safety concern.
“Bread quality intervention strategy will ensure that all bread producing facilities would produce safe bread for the Nigeria populace because the effective protection of over 167 million Nigeria public against cancer requires a preventive management approach.
“Another thing we discovered is, if somebody is going to make like four or five batches of bread, he may decide to add potassium bromate to like two or three batches and when supplying he will mix them up.
“There are very safe alternative available, most of the flour millers already produced high yeast flours that has the kind of addictive needed. There is quite a number that are already registered with NAFDAC and are safe for use,” she added.
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