Beyond the market

Confronting Nigeria’s unsafe food challenge as stakeholders advocate stronger regulations, better market infrastructure

It is another busy Saturday morning at Mile 12 Market in Lagos.

A mother carefully squeezes fresh tomatoes before bargaining with a trader. Nearby, another shopper inspects bunches of leafy vegetables glistening under splashes of water meant to keep them looking fresh. At the meat section, a butcher repeatedly waves away flies hovering over freshly cut beef, while a roadside vendor wraps hot akara in old newspapers before handing it to waiting customers.

Nothing seems out of the ordinary. The tomatoes look ripe. The vegetables appear fresh. The fish seems wholesome.

But what if the tomatoes still carry dangerous pesticide residues? What if the fish was preserved with formaldehyde? What if the grains sold in the next stall were treated with chemicals never meant for human consumption?

The greatest danger is that contaminated food rarely announces itself. Hours later, a child begins to complain of severe stomach cramps after dinner. A commuter develops acute diarrhoea halfway through a journey home. An elderly woman is rushed to hospital after persistent vomiting.

The illness is blamed on something that didn’t agree with me, spiritual attacks or an ordinary stomach upset. Rarely does anyone suspect that the real culprit may have been the food served on the family’s table.

Health experts said these are not isolated incidents. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), unsafe food causes more than 866 million illnesses and approximately 1.5 million deaths worldwide every year. Africa carries the heaviest burden, with about 91 million people falling ill annually and 137,000 dying from foodborne diseases. Young children are among the most vulnerable, suffering a disproportionate share of the disease burden.

Beyond the devastating human cost, unsafe food also weakens economies, reduces productivity, increases healthcare spending and threatens food security, making it one of the world’s most underestimated public health challenges.

For Nigeria, where millions of people rely daily on traditional markets and street food vendors for their meals, the statistics are both alarming and deeply personal.

It was against this backdrop that the Consumer Advocacy and Empowerment Foundation (CADEF) convened stakeholders for its 2026 Food Safety Day Webinar themed, “From Burden to Solutions: Safe Food Everywhere.”

Rather than merely sounding the alarm, the webinar brought together food scientists, public health experts and herbal medicine practitioners to examine why unsafe food persists and, more importantly, what governments, businesses and consumers must do to protect lives.

Moderating the session, LovelynOkafor, Director of Programmes at CADEF, reminded participants that the objective was not to frighten Nigerians with statistics but to provide practical, science-backed solutions that households, food vendors and policymakers can adopt.

“Our aim is to move the conversation from burden to solutions,” she said, stressing that food safety is a shared responsibility that begins with awareness and collective action.

The keynote presentation, delivered by Dr. Augustine Okoruwa, Principal Consultant, Food Systems and Agro-allied Solutions, sought to answer that question.

Speaking on “Safe Foods Everywhere: Risks and Practical Steps for Safer Food at Home and in Markets,” he argued that while government has a critical role to play, the journey to safer food begins with individual behaviour.

According to him, traditional markets remain the heartbeat of Nigeria’s food system, supplying millions of households with fresh vegetables, fruits, meat, fish, grains and other essential food items every day. They sustain livelihoods, strengthen food security and support local economies. Yet they are also where some of the country’s biggest food safety risks are found.

Drawing from observations across Nigerian markets, he painted a worrying picture of poor sanitation, indiscriminate food handling and inadequate storage practices. The same unsafe habits, he noted, often continue in homes where food is improperly stored, increasing the risk of contamination.

For many Nigerians, food safety simply means avoiding stale food or ensuring meals are well cooked. But Dr.Okoruwa explained that the threat goes far beyond bacteria and viruses.

“Most people think food safety is only about bacteria and viruses,” he said. “But chemical hazards are equally dangerous. Some of these chemicals contribute to cardiovascular diseases and other long-term health conditions.”

The food safety expert insisted that changing this reality begins with changing behaviour. “Knowledge is important. Attitude is important. Practice is important,” he stressed.

Using the COVID-19 pandemic as an example, he recalled how many people became diligent about handwashing during the outbreak but gradually abandoned the practice afterwards.

“But food safety did not disappear with COVID-19,” he remarked. “Proper handwashing remains one of the easiest ways to prevent foodborne illnesses.”

He urged households to separate raw foods from cooked foods, properly refrigerate perishable items and maintain clean kitchen environments.

Many families, he noted, unknowingly expose themselves to contamination by using the same chopping board for raw meat, fish and vegetables without proper washing.

Similarly, cooked food should always be stored above raw food inside refrigerators to prevent juices from raw meat contaminating ready-to-eat meals.

Beyond homes, he challenged food vendors to rethink how they handle and preserve food. According to him, market traders should source products from reputable suppliers, avoid selling stale food and resist the temptation to use harmful chemicals simply to maximise profits.

He warned particularly against the use of formaldehyde to preserve fish and meat, stressing that such practices endanger public health.

Consumers, he added, should also become more observant.

“If you find exposed meat without flies around it, you should ask questions,” he cautioned. “It could be an indication that harmful chemicals have been used.”

Rather than relying on dangerous preservatives, he encouraged farmers and traders to adopt safer technologies such as hermetic storage bags, including PICS bags and ZeroFly bags, which protect grains from insect infestation without chemicals.

For fresh fruits and vegetables, he pointed to the growing availability of solar-powered cold rooms capable of preserving produce while reducing post-harvest losses.

Yet, he maintained that awareness alone would not solve the problem.

Nigeria, he argued, also needs stronger legislation.

He expressed concern that the National Food Safety and Quality Bill 2023, which seeks to strengthen food safety regulation and formally bring traditional markets and street food vendors under the regulatory framework, has yet to become law.

Without adequate legal backing, he said, enforcement agencies are limited in holding offenders accountable.

He therefore called for the speedy passage of the legislation, the registration of food vendors and greater involvement of local governments in improving market sanitation and enforcing food safety standards.

The moderator emphasized  Okoruwa’s presentation highlightedthe fact that contaminated food spares no one.

“Contaminated food does not respect gender or age,” she observed. “If contaminated food gives you diarrhoea on the expressway, it doesn’t matter who you are.”

She noted that while many people believe they understand food safety, consistent practice remains a challenge.

“People think they already know about handwashing, cold storage and proper food handling,” she said. “But how many people can honestly say these are practices they take seriously every day in their homes?”

She also pointed out that many consumers may not realise that different foods require different handling methods, including the use of separate chopping boards to prevent cross-contamination.

Turning attention to food vendors, she questioned how many traders actually understand safe food handling practices or consciously think about protecting consumers.

Referring to interviews conducted in markets before the webinar, she noted that some traders admitted they simply did not know the correct food safety practices, while others blamed poor market conditions for the unhygienic environment in which they operate.

According to her, although consumers cannot simply stop going to the markets because they remain the primary source of food for many households, they have a responsibility to handle food properly once they get home.

“We have to take those food items home, clean them properly and ensure they are safe for our families,” she said.

Okafor also emphasised that while government cannot perform every household responsibility, it has a crucial role in creating an enabling environment.

“Government will not wash your vegetables for you or tell you where to buy your food,” she said. “But government can provide the right policies, strengthen education, improve regulation and do what government is expected to do.”

She said this informed the transition to the webinar’s second session, which focused on how stronger institutions and policies can support individual efforts to improve food safety.

As the conversation shifted from individual responsibility to institutional action, Dr.Shogbamimu, Director of the Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety Unit at the Lagos State Ministry of Health, argued that personal efforts must be reinforced by strong public systems.

Speaking on “Turning Policy Into Action to Build Stronger Food Safety Systems,” she said food safety cannot depend solely on the vigilance of consumers.

Using Lagos State as a case study, she explained that effective food safety requires robust policies backed by implementation, enforcement and collaboration among government agencies, regulators, healthcare professionals, market authorities and the private sector.

According to her, one of Nigeria’s biggest challenges is not necessarily the absence of policies but the gap between policy formulation and implementation.

She stressed the need to strengthen public health surveillance systems capable of detecting foodborne disease outbreaks early while investing more in environmental health services responsible for enforcing food safety regulations.

She also called for stronger partnerships with communities and market associations, noting that government alone cannot guarantee food safety without the cooperation of producers, traders and consumers.

The webinar concluded with a presentation by Mrs. BukolaIjeomaOgunsanwo, Founder of Bukola Bio Naturals and Managing Partner at Mc Herbal Nigeria, who drew attention to another often overlooked aspect of food safety—the growing consumption of herbal products.

Speaking on “Science-Based Practices for Safer Herbal Consumables,” she acknowledged the increasing acceptance of herbal medicine but cautioned that popularity should never replace science.

According to her, consumers deserve herbal products that are produced under hygienic conditions, scientifically validated and manufactured according to recognised quality standards.

She advocated greater investment in research, standardisation, quality assurance and Good Manufacturing Practices to ensure herbal products remain both safe and effective.

By the end of the webinar, a common thread had emerged from all three presentations.Safer food cannot be achieved through regulation alone.

Neither can it be achieved through consumer awareness alone.

It requires farmers who adopt safe agricultural practices, traders who refuse to compromise safety for profit, manufacturers who embrace scientific standards, governments that enforce regulations and consumers who make informed choices every day.

As participants logged off, one message lingered: the next meal on any Nigerian table could either nourish a family or make them sick.

Whether it does one or the other may depend not only on what is cooked, but on the collective decisions made from the farm to the market and finally to the dining table.

That, the experts agreed, is how Nigeria can truly move from burden to solutions.