The Federal Ministry of
Health has issued a statement affirming that all Coca Cola products
manufactured in Nigeria are safe for consumption.
Recall that a court in
Lagos last week ordered NAFDAC to warn Nigerians against taking Coca Cola and
Fanta with Vitamin C as the substances used in the production of the soft
drinks in Nigeria are harmful to the body when taken along with Vitamin C. Minister
of Health, Isaac Adewole, ordered an investigation and the findings have been
published. Read after the cut...
Background
Arising
from the recent court judgement on the case filed by Fijabi Holdings and
another versus Nigeria Bottling Company and NAFDAC (joined as a nominal party),
the Honourable Minister of Health summoned a meeting of the Department of Food
and Drug Services, Federal Ministry of Health, National Agency for Food and
Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and Standards Organisation of Nigeria
(SON) to address the related issues.
The
following were the findings:
1.
Both Benzoic acid and Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) are ingredients approved by
International Food Safety regulators and used in many food and beverage
products around the world.
2. Are
levels of additives introduced as preservatives within specification?
·
Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) is the organ established by Food and
Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and World Health
Organization (WHO) to set internationally recognized standards, codes of
practice, guidelines relating to foods, food production, and food safety.
·
In the case of Benzoic acid, the standard set by Codex was 600mg/kg until
recently reviewed to 250mg/kg and adopted in 2016. (CODEX STAN 192–1995
revised 2015 and 2016).
·
With reference to the Codex standard and other relevant documents, Standards
Organisation of Nigeria (SON) as the standard setting body in Nigeria in
consultation with technical experts and relevant stakeholders elaborated the standard
of benzoic acid in soft drinks to be at 250mg/kg based on the National climatic
and storage conditions. This standard has been in existence since 1997 and
revised in 2008. (NIS 217:2008)
·
The levels of benzoic acid in Fanta (1 batch) and Sprite (2 batches) presented
by the claimant in the court are 188.64mg/kg, 201.06mg/kg and 161.5mg/kg
respectively.
·
These levels are in compliance with both the Codex and Nigeria Industrial
Standards.
3. Are
Coca-Cola products manufactured in Nigeria safe for consumption?
·
Yes, the Coca-Cola products manufactured in Nigeria are safe for consumption in
view of the following reasons:
a.
Risk assessment was conducted to ascertain maximum limits of food additives
acceptable in foods.
b.
This takes into consideration the environmental, storage and distribution
conditions as well as the shelf life of food products.
c.
NAFDAC and SON regularly monitor the manufacturing practices of Food industries
and conduct laboratory analysis to ascertain continuous compliance with required
national standards.
d.
There was a routine inspection conducted at Nigeria Bottling Company by NAFDAC
officers in December, 2016 which was satisfactory.
4. Why
is there difference between the standard of Fanta and Sprite in Nigeria and the
United Kingdom?
·
With reference to the Codex standards, each country or region is permitted to
adapt a standard/limit based on country specific scientific evidence such as
environmental, storage and distribution conditions.
·
Benzoic acid as a preservative prevents the growth of microorganisms which
thrive more at higher climatic temperatures like in Nigeria.
·
Due to the different environmental conditions obtainable in the UK, the
standard for benzoic acid was set at a lower limit of 150mg/kg while in Nigeria
it was set at 250mg/kg even below that of Codex (as at time of production of
that batch; Codex limit was 600mgkg).
·
Food products being imported into a country must comply with the relevant
standards of the destination country. NAFDAC has processes in place to ensure
products imported into the country are evaluated to ascertain compliance with
required Nigeria Industrial Standards.
·
The claimant did not obtain NAFDAC certification before
export, otherwise, he would have been advised on the required standard of the
destination country.
Advisory
5.
In view of the above, we would like to advise all Nigerians to take medicines
with potable water. This would help to prevent unexpected drug-food
interactions.
6.
For the benefit of the health of all Nigerians, all bottling companies are
encouraged to insert advisory warnings on all products as necessary.