NAFDAC seizes 80 bags of tainted wheat in Gombe

On Friday, the National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, Gombe, announced the seizure of 80 bags of adulterated wheat from one Adamu Hassan’s store in Gombe market.

James Agada, NAFDAC’s State Coordinator, who displayed the tainted wheat to journalists in Gombe, warned the public to be wary of such wheat, which he said is not fit for human consumption.

According to Agada, the 80 bags of adulterated wheat were intended for planting by farmers and not for human consumption because it had been treated with pesticides.

He claims that a measure of wheat should be between N600 and N1,000, but that adulterated wheat should be between N200 and N300, putting it in high demand.

“As part of our routine surveillance and work in the state, we gathered intelligence that chemically treated wheat intended for farmers had been diverted into the Gombe market here for sale to consumers at a very low rate for their consumption,” he said.

He warned that consuming pesticide-treated wheat poses a health risk to the general public.

According to Agada, NAFDAC investigations revealed that the chemically treated wheat is intended for farmers participating in the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Anchor Borrowers program.

“The chemicals used in treating this are a pesticide, and it also has a fungicidal effect, so this grain in the soil will resist fungicide and insect attack,” he added. Someone is directly ingesting something that is dangerous to insects. It will have an effect on neurological problems as well as the spread of kidney problems.