TheCable

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has warned Nigerians against consuming frozen poultry products smuggled into the country.

Abubakar Jimoh, spokesperson to NAFDAC, said this on Monday, in an interview with NAN in Abuja.

Jimoh said food items such as frozen poultry products are usually preserved with formalin, and should be avoided as such products contain toxic substances.

Formalin, which is a form of formaldehyde, is a chemical added as a preservative for laboratory specimens and corpses — it is described as unsuitable for human consumption as it could cause cancer.

According to the NAFDAC spokesperson, formalin is used to preserve smuggled frozen poultry products such as chicken and turkey, and should be avoided.

“NAFDAC is alerting Nigerians about this practice. There are enough poultry products in the country than to resort to frozen chicken smuggled in, in spite of the Nigerian government’s ban,’’ he said.

According to the spokesperson, if smuggling practices are not discouraged, the growth of indigenous poultry farmers and marketers will be negatively affected.

He added that patronising smuggled products will also affect the country’s foreign exchange reserves.