By Olusegun Samuel Precious
Former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has raised an alarm over the widespread use of hazardous chemicals by farmers and fruit vendors across Nigeria, revealing that laboratory tests conducted on freshly squeezed orange juice prepared for his wife, Dolapo, showed it was unfit for human consumption.
Osinbajo made the revelation while delivering a keynote address at the Open Day for Gardeners’ Seminar, themed “Leaving The Earth Better Than We Found It,” held in Lagos. Video footage of his address surfaced online on Wednesday and went viral over the weekend.
According to the former Vice President, his wife—who abandoned carbonated drinks years ago in favor of daily fresh orange juice—began suffering from persistent, unexplained headaches.
“She would look at my own Coke-drinking habits with a lot of disapproval,” Osinbajo recounted. “But then, after a while, she started having some strange headaches, drinking her fresh juice every day.”
After ruling out other dietary causes, a sample of the home-squeezed juice was sent for chemical analysis. “The results came back. It showed that the orange juice, freshly squeezed, was not fit for human consumption,” he stated.
Osinbajo explained that the incident highlights a pervasive crisis in the agricultural supply chain, where vendors regularly deploy toxic chemicals—most notably calcium carbide—to artificially ripen fruits such as bananas, mangoes, and tomatoes.
Citing recent research, he noted a 2024 study where half of surveyed fruit vendors admitted to using calcium carbide, alongside a 2023 Lagos survey where more than 50% of retailers acknowledged using hazardous substances for produce preservation.
“So, this is almost like an epidemic,” Osinbajo warned. “The substances that they named, that they use, aside from calcium carbide, include Gamma-Lin 20, which is poison, Sniper, and Phosphite, a highly toxic fumigant.”
Emphasizing that visual appeal does not guarantee safety, Osinbajo urged regulatory authorities to strengthen enforcement while calling on consumers to remain vigilant when purchasing fresh produce.
“The fact that fruit looks fresh doesn’t mean that it is safe, and the fact that a drink is natural doesn’t mean that something dangerous has not been added along the journey from the farm to the table,” he warned, advocating for public education on safe agricultural practices.
Osinbajo’s disclosure aligns with growing national concern over substandard and adulterated food items circulating in Nigerian markets, following viral consumer reports exposing fake household products, dyed palm oil, and artificially colored fruits.
