Barely two weeks after it cautioned residents of Lagos State against the
consumption of plantain chips not produced under hygienic condition, the
Lagos State Consumer Protection Agency, LASCOPA has issued another
warning. This time the agency has warned producers, entrepreneurs as
well as other stakeholders in the food supply chain against peddling
unregistered food products.
Afolabi Solebo, General Manager, LASCOPA issued the warning during
one of his unscheduled monitoring visits to some supermarkets and
grocery stores in the state. He implored them to ensure that all consumable
food products being produced and sold to consumers are registered with
the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control,
NAFDAC. A statement by the Lagos state agency also reported Solebo as
calling for the inclusion and display of comprehensive and genuine
information about consumable products at strategic places where such
information can be easily seen. This, according to him, is necessary
following the growing concerns about the presence and sales of
unregistered products, and the lack of product information on most food
and consumables products being circulated and sold in supermarkets and
grocery stores across the state.
He said, “The proliferation of some unregistered dairy products and their
derivatives pose significant risks to public health and safety.” He has,
therefore, called on “supermarkets, restaurants, grocery stores, and other
establishments selling products like ice creams, yoghurts and their
derivatives, preformed tray foods, baking and bakery products, food-in-
containers, dips, and spreads, parfait, chips, crisps, and drinks to exercise
due diligence in ensuring their products are registered and contain detailed
information such as the NAFDAC number, production and expiry dates, in
order not to inadvertently offer unsafe food to unsuspecting consumers.”
Bushlink, recently, reported an alert by the agency against the consumption
of reportedly unsafe plantain chips, which it said it was investigating.
Thereafter, NAFDAC also hinted that it was investigating the production of
the plantain chips said to be corrupted with polythene smelted in the oil
used for frying the food product.
