The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has refuted claims that it advised Nigerians to avoid bread baked and sold in the country due to the presence of saccharine, a banned sweetener.
The Director-General of the agency, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye in a statement, said NAFDAC never issued any statement suggesting that Nigerian bread is unsafe for consumption. Adeyeye’s address was a response to a viral video by a social media influencer alleging that NAFDAC had advised Nigerians to avoid locally baked bread because samples had failed laboratory tests due to the presence of saccharine.
The video also alleged that Nigerian bakers have turned to saccharine as a substitute for sugar, which has become prohibitively expensive due to inflation. Though Professor Adeyeye confirmed that saccharine is indeed banned in bread production in Nigeria, in line with global health guidelines due to its potential health risks to consumers, her agency never banned the sale or production of locally made bread.
The statement said, “ The attention of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has been drawn to a video circulating on social media titled: Bread sold in markets failing laboratory tests, NAFDAC raises fresh alarm.
“The reporter stated that NAFDAC had raised a concern that ‘most of the bread in the market are failing laboratory tests because producers are using saccharine to bake bread more than they are using sugar due to the high cost of sugar. The reporter went on to tell Nigerians to avoid bread in Nigeria.
“As a responsive regulatory Agency, NAFDAC wishes to provide clarification that the content of the video on avoiding bread in Nigeria does not reflect the observation of NAFDAC which was made during a stakeholders’ engagement held on 16th August 2024 in Ibadan, Oyo State.
“At no time during that engagement with stakeholders did NAFDAC suggest that Nigerians should avoid bread baked and sold in Nigeria. The Agency is a responsible regulator and does not make general statements capable of causing panic and fear in the population.
“Any baker found to be using unapproved food additives, in this case, saccharine, is appropriately sanctioned in line with the extant regulatory provisions. The Nigerian Industrial Standard (NIS) does not permit the use of saccharine in bread.
“This is the same for the Codex General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA), an authoritative reference point for food additives, which also does not permit the use of saccharine in bread. Like other food additives, sweeteners usually undergo thorough risk assessments for safety by an expert body, the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) before approval for use.
“NAFDAC dissociates herself from the comment of the reporter in the circulating video about avoiding bread in Nigeria. This is the personal statement of the reporter who does not speak for the Agency and wishes to reassure the public that the Agency remains fully alive to her responsibilities of safeguarding the health of the public.”
