Following global safety concerns, the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, on Monday said it had started investigating and responding to news on recall of Indomie noodles by Taiwanese and Malaysian authorities.
Director General of NAFDAC, Mojisola Adeyeye, in a statement, said: “Tomorrow (today), May 2, 2023, NAFDAC’s Food Safety and Applied Nutrition Directorate will randomly sample Indomie noodles (including the seasoning). The compound of interest is ethylene oxide. The Director, Food Lab Services Directorate, has been engaged. He is working on methodology for the analysis.
“It should be noted that Indomie noodles have been banned from being imported into the country for many years. It is one of the foods on the government prohibition list. It is not allowed in Nigeria, and therefore, not registered by NAFDAC. What we are doing is extra caution to ensure that the product is not smuggled in, and if so, our post-marketing surveillance would detect it.
“We also want to be sure that the spices used for Indomie and other noodles in Nigeria are tested. That is what NAFDAC Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (FSAN) and Post-Marketing Surveillance (PMS) are doing this week at the production facilities and in the market. The public will be duly updated with outcomes of the investigation.”
Meanwhile, earlier studies have suggested that regular consumption of rice, noodle and bread increase the risk of developing chronic diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, kidney damage, stroke and obesity.
In recent times, there have been claims and counterclaims that long-term consumption of foods with high glycemic index, potassium bromate and arsenic increases risk of developing non-communicable diseases.
Also on Monday, SWIPHA announced the recall of all batches of Polyfort Suspension in stock over negative trend.
Polyfort Suspension is a remedy for constipation, heartburn and over-acidity.
SWIPHA, in a letter to its distributors and customers, titled ‘Recall Exercise for Ployfort Suspension’ and dated April 27, 2023, noted: “Kindly be informed that we are initiating an immediate recall for all batches of Polyfort Suspension in stock.
“This is on account of the result of ongoing stability study on batches LS222072, LS222073 and LS222074, showing a negative trend. We are currently carrying out further investigation on other batches.
“However, we are mandated to inform you within 24 to 48 hours. We are unable to wait for the outcome of this investigation, hence, the decision to recall all batches of Polyfort in your custody.”
The letter added: “Further sales of Polyfort Suspension in your custody should be stopped, and inventory segregated immediately. Also, contact customers to whom you sold Polyfort Suspension to return them back to you. All Polyfort stock (your stock and that of your customers) should be handed over to the Swipha medical or sales representatives assigned to you.”
