Using Chemical To Process Food Constitutes Dangerous Threat To Public Health – Hon Wunmi Oladeji
The Oyo State House of Assembly has demanded preventative action against the use of dangerous chemicals in the handling, preparing, and preserving of food.
This action was taken to stop the spread of serious illnesses like cancer, kidney failure, and heart disease, among others.
The call was made in a motion that Hon. Bimbo Olawumi Oladeji, the lawmaker for the Ogbomoso North state constituency, moved and Hon. Olamide Akinajo seconded during the plenary on Tuesday.
The lawmaker stated in her motion that it has become common practice in some states, such as Ondo and Ekiti, to process cassava, preserve ponmo, and some other foodstuffs to make them soft and ferment in order to maximize profit. These chemicals include hypo, bleach, potash, and detergents.
Hon. Oladeji emphasized that the practice poses a serious threat to public health while urging the Oyo State Ministry of Information, Culture, and Tourism to launch awareness campaigns at food markets throughout the state.
In her prayers, the lawmaker, who chairs the committee on women issues and social inclusion, begged the state administration to establish a special task force that would continually keep an eye out for criminal activities and detain anyone indulging in it with an emphasis on prosecution.
She also encouraged non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the state’s Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Inclusion to launch recurring campaigns to raise awareness of the risks linked with the use of toxic chemicals in the production of fufu and other food ingredients.
In his remarks, the lawmaker who represents Iseyin/Itesiwaju state constituency, Hon. Dele Adeola, backed the motion’s initiator, Hon. Oladeji, by urging the environmental and health task force to properly monitor, apprehend, and prosecute offenders to ensure a healthy environment.
While adopting all the resolutions, the Speaker of Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin, called on the state’s Ministry of Health to set up a task force that will be arresting culprits who are indulging in the use of harmful chemicals in the process, production and preservation of foods.
Hon. Ogundoyin, urged all the concerned Ministries to take the necessary steps in addressing the situation
