Nigerians Face Growing Health Threat from Chemical Contamination in Food

Due to the widespread use of hazardous chemicals like formalin and sniper to preserve food, experts are warning of an impending public health disaster as Nigerians struggle with growing food costs and economic hardship.

Health professionals are alarmed by what started out as isolated cases, which have now grown into a national problem. The House of Representatives has recently opened an investigation into the risky practice.

In separate interviews stakeholders cautioned that in the absence of strong political will, the investigation may turn out to be just another well-meaning investigation that fails to bring about change.

The experts agreed that Ni­geria’s food safety crisis persists largely because of weak insti­tutional coordination. Multiple agencies — including NAFDAC, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), and the Quaran­tine Service — share overlapping responsibilities.

Adebowale Onafowora, Man­aging Director of BIC Farms Concept, described the issue as a long-running public health failure sustained by greed, igno­rance, and infrastructure decay.

“The use of unapproved chemicals like formalin and snipers is disturbingly wide­spread. The primary driver is economic greed— traders want to minimise losses and max­imise profit, even if it means poisoning consumers.”

He said that lack of cold chain infrastructure — such as constant electricity, refrigerated trucks, and cold storage — forc­es many traders to turn to chem­ical alternatives.

“When refrigeration fails, formalin becomes the ‘guaran­teed’ preservative,” Onafowora lamented.

He also blamed ignorance among small-scale traders who may not fully understand the health consequences.

“Many handlers just use what they’ve been told works. They buy these substances from unregulated chemical markets without any knowl­edge of their toxicity. There’s a total failure of post-market surveillance.

“NAFDAC is strong on paper, but the real contamina­tion happens at open markets, slaughter slabs, and distribution hubs. That’s where monitoring collapses.”

Prince Oyewumi Oyedele Oyetunde, Editor-in-Chief, Farmers Choice Magazine, de­scribed the situation as alarm­ing, stressing that reports of vendors and importers using hazardous chemicals to prolong the shelf life of frozen chicken, fish, and meat have become widespread.

“The use of toxic chemicals like formalin and sniper for preserving frozen foods is a concerning issue in Nigeria’s food supply chain. While the exact extent of this practice is difficult to determine, recent investigations suggest it’s a sig­nificant problem.

“These substances are cheap and effective, so trad­ers see them as a shortcut to prevent spoilage,” Adewale Adeoye, Executive Director of Journalist for Democratic Rights (JODER), said that the House has done the right thing theoretically but in reality, there are fears that the probe may amount to nothing given the experiences of Nigerians with past probes.

“This is not just a matter for the National Assembly alone, states houses of assembly and state health commissioners should be concerned. People in millions are being exposed to death through cancer. When you visit any market in Nigeria, the usage of sniper as preservatives is not hidden.

“Most appointments into these agencies are political, not professional. Without technical expertise and the right manpow­er, these institutions can’t per­form effectively. What we need is not just a probe, but a national emergency declaration on food safety.”

Shakin Agbayewa, the Deputy Chairman, All Farm­ers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), said that the crisis boils down to greed and com­promise — from traders to en­forcement officers.

“Cutting corners has become the norm. Everyone wants to make money fast, even at the expense of public health.”

He accused border and port officials of aiding the importa­tion of tainted frozen foods.

“How do these products leave our borders and find their way into city markets? Somebody is looking the other way. Smug­gling thrives because some offi­cers are compromised.”

Agbayewa believes agen­cies like SON and NAFDAC need to move beyond their offices and engage directly with associations, traders, and processors.

“Their sensitisation pro­grammes are too low. They should go into markets, speak to associations, and teach farmers and importers about safe preser­vation practices,” he said.

The experts are of the opin­ion that tackling the problem re­quires a multi-layered approach involving stricter enforcement, public education, and invest­ment in technology.

Oyewumi thereby recom­mended increased inspections, stiffer penalties, and public awareness campaigns to edu­cate consumers about the risks of toxic preservatives.

He also urged collaboration between agencies and industry groups to enhance supply chain transparency.

Onafowora also called for the deployment of mobile test kits at major markets, creation of food safety courts for swift pros­ecution, and chemical blacklist­ing to prevent the importation of substances like formalin and Dichlorvos.

Agbayewa, on his part, stressed the need for massive sensitisation campaigns and modern cold chain solutions.

“If our traders have reliable cold storage, they won’t need to use poison to preserve food,” he said.

For Adeoye, we have seen many probes fade into silence. What we need now is enforce­ment — visible, consistent, and uncompromising.