NAFDAC DG Says Raw Farm Produce Not Under its Control

News in Brief:

— NAFDAC Director-General Mojisola Adeyeye says raw farm produce like yam, oranges and apples fall under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Agriculture and NAQS, not NAFDAC.

— The clarification follows public criticism sparked by Yemi Osinbajo's viral account of his wife's unsafe fruit juice experience.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has cleared the air about its responsibility in upholding the production and distribution of safe food in Nigeria.

Mrs Mojisola Adeyeye, the agency's Director-General, explained that raw farm produce like yam, oranges, and apples are constitutionally not under its control.

Raw Food Jurisdiction

Adeyeye made this clarification during an interview on Channels Television on Wednesday in response to ongoing conversation about how NAFDAC's ineffectiveness is allowing unsafe food, fruits and drugs to thrive in Nigerian markets, threatening the health of the people.

She said the confusion stemmed from social media claims wrongly placing every food item under NAFDAC's watch.

Clarifying the confusion, Adeyeye explained that naturally grown food items like yam, oranges, and other fruits fall under the Ministry of Agriculture's control, not NAFDAC's.

“The National Food and Safety Policy said that produce from the farm is not under the control of NAFDAC, " she said, adding that the agency controls semi-processed products instead.

“So, in the social media thing that we responded to, they said apples, NAFDAC; oranges, NAFDAC. No, that is under the Ministry of Agriculture, but we are supposed to work together because it is that produce that can be processed, which is under our control," the DG announced.

NAFDAC Under Criticism

NAFDAC recently became a subject of public criticism, especially on social media, after a video of former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo talking about his wife’s experience with unsafe fruit went viral and reignited the public outcry for stronger regulatory oversight and actions by NAFDAC.

More calls and reactions followed the former VP’s remark, with the Senate of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) calling President Bola Tinubu to intervene urgently in what it termed the regulatory collapse at NAFDAC and related agencies, including the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON). 

The body demanded an immediate, independent audit of the enforcement capacity and performance of both agencies, alongside stronger monitoring of food and drug sales on social media platforms.