By Sandra Kenneth
The Director-General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, has expressed concern over public ignorance regarding the specific mandates of government bodies responsible for food safety and pesticide regulation in Nigeria.
Speaking in a televised interview, Adeyeye addressed widespread public confusion over the division of regulatory duties between NAFDAC and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture.
“First of all, we are ignorant in this country. We are very ignorant. We don’t read. We don’t understand,” Adeyeye remarked, emphasizing that food safety oversight spans multiple institutions “from farm to fork.”
Clarifying NAFDAC’s jurisdiction, Adeyeye noted that the agency’s primary mandate applies strictly to processed and semi-processed foods, rather than fresh agricultural produce sold directly in open markets.
“The oranges you buy in the market, we don’t control the oranges you buy in the market,” she explained, adding that the Ministry of Agriculture retains primary authority over fresh farm output.
However, the NAFDAC boss highlighted her agency’s responsibility in regulating agrochemicals, noting that NAFDAC approves and controls the distribution of pesticides nationwide. She warned that misuse often stems from high illiteracy levels among farm operators who fail to follow product usage instructions on labels.
“We have about 56 percent illiteracy,” Adeyeye said. “Sometimes our people don’t understand, and they think the more [pesticide] you put, the better.”
While confirming that NAFDAC’s Veterinary Medicine and Allied Products Directorate conducts training for farmers on chemical handling and harvest timing, Adeyeye stressed that the agency lacks the manpower to reach every agricultural worker independently, calling on the Ministry of Agriculture to step up field extension services across the country.
