... NIFST President Dr. Bola Osinowo speaks on stronger food safety enforcement and the potential of Nigerian cuisine as a tourism product.
▪︎ NIFST President Bola Osinowo speaking on food safety enforcement at an ANJET meeting in Lagos
The Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology (NIFST) has called for stronger enforcement of food safety regulations, including arrest where necessary, to curb unsafe food handling practices across the country.
NIFST President, Dr Bola Osinowo, made the call at a breakfast meeting with members of the Association of Nigerian Journalists and Writers of Tourism (ANJET) in Lagos.
The meeting focused on food safety, public awareness, regulation and the potential of Nigerian cuisine as a tourism product.
Osinowo said public education on food safety must be backed by enforcement, particularly when repeated awareness campaigns fail to change unsafe practices.
“When you educate, you also need to enforce,” he said.
He urged the government, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and other regulatory agencies to strengthen food safety awareness and enforcement, while providing the resources needed to effectively carry out their responsibilities.
According to Osinowo, the NAFDAC Director-General had informed him that the agency required a minimum of 20,000 workers but had about 2,000.
He therefore called for stronger government support for regulatory agencies and greater involvement of local government food inspectors to improve monitoring and enforcement at the grassroots.
Osinowo said NIFST’s Food Safety Committee had been educating market women on basic hygiene, food preservation and the dangers of using harmful chemicals in food handling.
He, however, stressed that education alone would not be enough where unsafe practices continued.
“Initially we can show love, but if that is not working, we need to arrest and put action behind it,” he said.
NIFST Public Relations Officer, Olutaller Akinwole, said public awareness remained critical because many food sellers were unaware of the implications of unsafe practices.
“Awareness is a very critical thing,” he said.
Akinwole said the NIFST Academy was open to collaboration with local governments, regulatory agencies and associations to train food handlers and improve their understanding of safe food practices.
NIFST National Secretary, Rasaq Oke, also called for collaboration with NAFDAC and other relevant agencies to educate people involved in unsafe food handling.
“Food safety is everybody’s responsibility,” Oke said.
He said the challenge required collective action and sustained cooperation among stakeholders.
Taiwo Ubany, Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, also stressed the importance of awareness, noting that many people remained unaware of unsafe practices and their possible consequences.
Former Chairman of the NIFST Lagos Chapter, Sunday Bamgbose, linked food safety to Nigeria’s tourism ambitions and the promotion of local cuisine.
“I can see the potential of tourism in Nigeria if we put our act together,” he said.
Bamgbose said Nigeria’s diverse food culture could be showcased internationally, but stressed that food safety remained an important part of the visitor experience.
He recalled that the NIFST Lagos Chapter had worked with street food vendors, educating them on food safety practices and providing personal protective equipment.
According to him, stronger partnerships could help expand such initiatives despite resource limitations while strengthening the connection between food safety and tourism.
“If we do this, I believe we start talking of, just as we talk about Chinese food, we start talking about Nigerian food in a very short time,” Bamgbose said.
Earlier, Osinowo said NIFST, established in 1976, was marking its 50th anniversary with activities including its 50th conference and annual general meeting in Lagos.
He said the institute had more than 15,000 members worldwide and 11 active chapters in Nigeria.
According to him, NIFST brings together professionals from academia, industry, government, research, regulatory agencies and the hospitality sector.
The 50th anniversary provides an opportunity for the institute to highlight its contributions to food science, technology, food safety and professional capacity building.
Osinowo reiterated that awareness and advocacy must be followed by enforcement where unsafe practices persist.
The call comes as stakeholders continue to examine how stronger food safety standards can protect consumers while helping Nigeria develop its diverse cuisine into a more prominent tourism and hospitality product.
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