{"id":123185,"date":"2025-10-22T19:11:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-22T18:11:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pointblanknews.com\/pbn\/?p=123185"},"modified":"2025-10-22T19:11:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T18:11:13","slug":"reps-to-probe-alleged-use-of-toxic-chemicals-in-frozen-food-preservation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pointblanknews.com\/pbn\/news\/reps-to-probe-alleged-use-of-toxic-chemicals-in-frozen-food-preservation\/","title":{"rendered":"Reps to Probe Alleged Use of Toxic Chemicals in Frozen Food Preservation"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">By Tracy Moses<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The House of Representatives has ordered a probe into the alleged use of dangerous chemicals, including substances meant for corpse embalming, formalin, sodium hydroxide, sniper, and kerosene, for the preservation of frozen foods across Nigeria.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">This resolution followed the adoption of a motion of urgent national importance sponsored by Hon. Chike Okafor, representing Ehime Mbano\/Ihitte Uboma\/Obowo Federal Constituency of Imo State, during plenary on Wednesday.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Presenting the motion, Okafor drew attention to widespread public concern over reports that harmful industrial chemicals such as formalin, sodium hydroxide, sniper, kerosene, and carbide are being used to preserve frozen fish, prawns, shrimps, meat, and other food products sold in Nigerian markets.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He cited findings from regulatory authorities, medical experts, and media investigations, which revealed that these substances, originally designed for embalming corpses and other industrial applications, are now being used to extend the shelf life of perishable foods.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to Okafor, these practices expose consumers to severe health risks, including cancer, organ damage, and developmental disorders such as autism in children, as documented by the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lawmaker lamented that many imported frozen foods are preserved with carcinogenic agents known to cause cancer.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cSome eateries have also been reported to use hazardous materials like Dimethylpolysiloxane, a silicone-based compound used in lubricants and defoamers, in preparing chicken,\u201d Okafor said. \u201cOthers use Tertiary Butyl Hydroquinone (TBHQ), a chemical preservative so toxic that five grams could kill a human being.\u201d<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">He expressed dismay over what he described as the complacency and negligence of relevant regulatory agencies, which have allegedly allowed the illegal use of these chemicals to persist despite previous legislative resolutions and public warnings.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cDespite the provisions of Nigeria\u2019s Food Safety Bill (2023) and the mandates of NAFDAC, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), and the Federal Ministry of Health to protect citizens, enforcement has remained weak. The situation is like having \u2018water everywhere but none to drink,\u2019 while Nigerians continue to die silently from toxic food preservatives,\u201d he lamented.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">Following the debate, the House mandated its relevant committees to carry out a thorough investigation into the alleged use of toxic substances in frozen food preservation and the importation of food items treated with carcinogenic chemicals. The committees are to report back within six weeks.<\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"text-align: justify;\">The lawmakers also summoned the Federal Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Food Security, NAFDAC, SON, and other concerned agencies to appear before the investigative panel and present details of their efforts to tackle the menace.<\/div>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Related Posts generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Tracy Moses The House of Representatives has ordered a probe into the alleged use of dangerous chemicals, including substances meant for corpse embalming, formalin, sodium hydroxide, sniper, and kerosene,&hellip;<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on wp_trim_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on wp_trim_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Related Posts generic via filter on wp_trim_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":118246,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-123185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.8 - 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