The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has warned Nigerians against consuming fruits ripened with calcium carbide.

FCCPC’s CEO, Olatunji Bello, gave the warning on Monday at a one-day sensitisation programme on food quality standards, organised by the agency in Ado-Ekiti.

Mr Bello, who was represented by the agency’s director of Quality Assurance, Nkechi Mba, frowned at the increasing sale of adulterated and contaminated foods in the markets.

The FCCPC boss lamented that perpetrators of such acts were putting the lives of many innocent Nigerians at great risk. He promised that the agency would not allow those responsible for such heinous acts to go scot-free.

According to him, the sensitisation programme is the first step towards alerting unsuspecting people and sending a warning signal to “defiant” perpetrators. He disclosed that a total enforcement of the law has commenced, noting that the agency would not shy away from performing its roles.

Mr Bello said the FCCPC has the statutory responsibility to protect and promote the interests and welfare of consumers at all times.

”The issues of food quality standards, safety, and fair business practices are more pressing than ever, but we continue to see alarming trends. Such alarming trends include principally the forceful ripening of fruits, using harmful chemicals, such as calcium carbide, which contains trace amounts of arsenic and phosphorus, both of which are highly toxic to humans. These practices not only endanger the lives of millions of Nigerians, but they also erode consumer trust and sabotage the integrity of our food systems,” he stated.

He said that the agency was collaborating with other agencies, such as the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control, the Standard Organisation of Nigeria, and the Federal Ministries of Health and Agriculture, to ensure strict compliance.

He advised consumers to also watch carefully what they buy in the markets or at farms.

To prove his point, he disclosed that through regular market surveys, the FCCPC had been able to intervene in numerous cases involving hazardous food practices and had shut down facilities, imposed sanctions, and prosecuted offenders where necessary.

(NAN)