By Amos Tauna
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control is investigating a viral social media post alleging a woman fried plantain chips using oil adulterated with polythene, Sayo Akintola, NAFDAC’s Resident Media Consultant, said in a statement.
The statement issued on Saturday explained that the agency was taking a science-based approach to verifying the claim before taking any action and assured citizens of its commitment to safeguarding public health amid the disturbing allegation.
According to the viral post, “A woman allegedly melted about five pieces of olonka rubber (polythene) into oil before grating plantain to make chips.”
The statement stated that the attention of the Management of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control has been drawn to viral posts making the rounds on social media where an individual was reporting the alleged frying of plantain chips by a woman, saying that before she grated the plantain into the hot oil she melted about five of the white polythene, what the agency calls ‘olonka rubber’ into the oil.
According to NAFDAC, the post began circulating before the date the practice was supposedly observed, without indicating the geographical location, assuring that the agency was taking a science-based approach in her response to the alleged claim and would conduct a necessary laboratory investigation into the claim.
It advised the public who consumes NAFDAC-regulated food products remains the same and centres around being vigilant as consumers and also advised Nigerians buying NAFDAC-regulated food products to be vigilant and cautious.
It also advised citizens to only purchase from reputable sources, while checking for NAFDAC registration numbers on product labels, while advising against products with suspicious packaging, objectionable smell/color, or unrealistically low prices.
