The Federal Government of Nigeria, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), has reiterated its commitment to a science-driven overhaul of the nation\u2019s food safety framework, underscoring the urgent need to combat the growing threat of foodborne diseases through innovation, regulatory reform, and multi-stakeholder engagement.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the 2025 World Food Safety Day commemoration in Abuja, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Daju Kachollom, warned that unsafe food continues to exact a heavy toll on public health and economic productivity\u2014particularly in low- and middle-income countries such as Nigeria.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith this year\u2019s theme, \u2018Food Safety: Science in Action\u2019<\/em>, we are reinforcing our determination to translate research into results,\u201d Kachollom said. \u201cFrom production to consumption, science must underpin every step of our food chain.\u201d<\/p>\n She noted that over 600 million people globally suffer from foodborne illnesses each year, with the economic burden estimated at more than $110 billion annually due to productivity losses and healthcare costs.<\/p>\n Highlighting Nigeria\u2019s progress, Kachollom cited key policy reforms, including the revised National Policy on Food Safety and Quality<\/strong>, the introduction of the National Guideline for Sodium Reduction<\/strong>, and the Food Handlers\u2019 Medical Test Guideline<\/strong>. These frameworks, she said, are designed to safeguard consumers and modernise inspection protocols.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are deploying digital traceability tools, strengthening laboratory diagnostics, and updating national inspection frameworks\u2014all rooted in scientific best practices,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Technical Working Groups (TWGs), comprising experts in risk assessment, inspection, education, and traceability, have been constituted to shape forthcoming regulatory measures. Early evidence from the sodium reduction policy shows positive industry response, with manufacturers beginning to reformulate products to align with healthier standards.<\/p>\n \u201cOur long-term vision is to institutionalise a food safety system that is inclusive, science-led, and future-proof,\u201d Kachollom said. She called on all actors\u2014government agencies, private sector players, academia, and civil society\u2014to act as food safety ambassadors at the community level.<\/p>\n Representing the WHO Country Office, Dr. Pindar Wakawa, Technical Officer for Nutrition, conveyed remarks on behalf of WHO Representative Dr. Walter Kazadi Mulombo, stressing that science must remain the backbone of global and national responses to foodborne disease.<\/p>\n \u201cUnderreporting and weak data linkages between contamination and illness have obscured the real impact of unsafe food,\u201d he said. \u201cFood safety cannot be achieved without science\u2014especially in today\u2019s interconnected global food systems.\u201d<\/p>\n Dr. Wakawa pointed to WHO\u2019s joint initiatives with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), including the GEMS\/Food<\/strong> surveillance system and INFOSAN<\/strong>, which equip countries with the data and tools to detect and mitigate food safety threats, particularly in cross-border contexts.<\/p>\n He urged national authorities to scale up investment in food safety research, strengthen enforcement of evidence-based standards, and ensure that science translates into tangible protections at every point along the food supply chain.<\/p>\n Also speaking, Mrs. Olubunmi Aribeana, Director of the Food and Drug Services Department, echoed the emphasis on shared accountability. \u201cFrom the farmer to the final consumer, everyone plays a role in food safety,\u201d she said, citing the role of scientific methods in reducing contamination and public health costs.<\/p>\n Earlier in the event, National Coordinator of the Food Safety and Quality Programme, Mr. John Atanda, reaffirmed the Ministry\u2019s commitment to a science-led food safety ecosystem and called for continued stakeholder vigilance.<\/p>\n \u201cWorld Food Safety Day is not just a symbolic moment\u2014it is a strategic opportunity to accelerate systems reform, scale scientific innovations, and protect the wellbeing of our people and economy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Federal Government of Nigeria, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), has reiterated its commitment to a science-driven overhaul of the nation\u2019s food safety framework, underscoring the urgent…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6335,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[90,78],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nigeria","category-regulatory"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Food-Safety-in-Nigeria.jpeg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6333"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6333\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6336,"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6333\/revisions\/6336"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regtechafrica.com\/healthcare\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}