JUST last week there was a report of an arrest of two women suspected to be involved in artificially colouring oranges.
THE arrest, which was made by the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), followed a police swoop at the Madina market in Accra on Tuesday, June 12, 2017 when photos and a video on the incident went buzzing on social media.
IT is refreshing that at least two of such suspects have been arrested.
THE point Today is trying to establish here is that there are many of such sellers who indulge in these kinds of killer practices on the blindside of our regulatory institutions.
FOR them, their primary aim is to make profit even if it means putting the health of consumers at risk. We are all aware of the Sudan Red Dye in palm oil which made the headlines a few years ago. The artificial colour was added to palm oil mainly to make the colour look good unmindful of its effects on humans.
THE case of the salted fish, popularly known as koobi, allegedly preserved in a chemical used in preserving dead bodies is very fresh in our minds. There have been several reports over various types of harmful colouring used in enhancing the colour of powdered pepper and other foodstuff sold in the open markets.
BUT aside of dangerous chemicals used in enhancing the appeal of food items, the other worrying aspect is the presence of expired food items on shop shelves. Many of the shops and supermarkets dotted around the country are stocked with various expired commodities, all endangering the lives of consumers.
OWNERS of such stores and supermarkets have taken advantage of the fact that many of us hardly check the expiry dates of commodities which we buy at the marketplace and in the supermarkets.
THE situation even becomes alarming where for survival sake and during festivities such as Christmas and Easter our markets tend to be inundated with all manner of toxic products.
WE recall last year in April when FDA seized over a metric ton of expired commodities ahead of the Easter festivities.
WE know that FDA faces a huge task in ensuring that our markets are free of toxic products, but that, arguably, is not a reason for the state agency not to be proactive.
IN the view of Today, FDA needs to cast its net wider to ensure that perpetuators of such heinous crimes are quickly apprehended before they wreak havoc with their products.
IT is only by being proactive, have an active market surveillance team perpetually present in the markets and having more personnel at all corners of the country will FDA be able to regulate foods and drugs that flood our markets.
THAT also means that government must ensure that it adequately resources them to be able to carry out their duties diligently.
WHAT is more, FDA must intensify its collaboration with state institutions like the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), the Police Administration among others to ensure early detection of such hazardous products.
LAST but not least we as consumers also have an onerous role to play in all these. We must willingly volunteer information on any suspicious and hazardous products on the market.
TODAY believes that when we work in tandem along the above lines we will be able to prevent toxic products from flooding our markets which will make all of us healthy citizens.
THE FDA must be seen to be discharging its constitutional mandate to protect the citizenry from harmful consumables.
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