The House of Representatives has called for tougher food safety laws and stricter enforcement to protect Nigerians from toxic chemicals and adulterated food amid concerns over malnutrition, food insecurity and diseases linked to unsafe food production.
The House Committee on Nutrition and Food Security said existing policies had failed to adequately address the country’s nutrition challenges, stressing the need for enforceable legislation to guarantee access to safe, nutritious and affordable food.
The committee’s position was contained in a speech delivered by its clerk, Dr Agenti Milicent Millicent, on behalf of its chairman, Chike Okafor, at a media briefing in Abuja on Friday to commemorate the 2026 World Food Day.
The briefing was organised by the Centre for Food Safety and Agriculture Research in conjunction with LoveWorld Ministry of Food Technology and Sovereignty to commemorate the 2026 World Food Day, themed “Innovate Today, Nourish Tomorrow.”
“We have many policies, but few enforceable laws,” the chairman said, calling for legislative action to address the country’s food and nutrition challenges.
“We must ensure that every Nigerian, from the child in the womb to the farmer in the field, and indeed every Nigerian, has access to safe, nutritious, and affordable food, using every available legislative means,” he said.
The committee expressed concern over persistent cases of malnutrition, stunting, wasting and anaemia, as well as poor exclusive breastfeeding practices. It warned that unsafe food production and the indiscriminate use of chemicals could worsen public health problems, including kidney and liver diseases.
It called for legislation to protect local food systems, ensure the proper utilisation of nutrition funds and shield children from aggressive marketing of unhealthy foods.
The chairman disclosed that the committee was working on a bill to establish the Nutritionist Registration Council of Nigeria to regulate the profession. It was also involved in efforts to advance a National Nutrition Bill sponsored by the Presidency through the Office of the Vice-President, which he said had reached an advanced stage ahead of its transmission to the National Assembly.
The committee also disclosed that it was investigating the alleged misuse of government agricultural intervention funds by agencies, schemes and programmes operating outside the Federal Ministry of Agriculture.
As part of the investigation, it had engaged the Central Bank of Nigeria, the National Agricultural Development Board and other relevant agencies over concerns surrounding agricultural interventions, including the ginger blight outbreak that devastated production in parts of the country.
Speaking at the event, a food safety advocate, Dr Adebayo Segun, called for a thorough investigation of agricultural intervention programmes and the chemicals used in food production, warning that poorly regulated inputs could undermine food security and public health.
He also advocated a shift towards organic farming and the use of natural seeds, urging Nigerians to consider planting edible crops rather than ornamental plants where practical.
“Food safety concerns everyone, regardless of their religious affiliations or background,” he said.
The alleged link between agricultural inputs and the ginger blight outbreak has raised questions about the monitoring of farm support programmes and the quality of materials supplied to farmers. The committee did not disclose the findings of its investigation.
The committee also said the country’s food and nutrition challenges required coordinated action by federal and state governments, lawmakers, civil society organisations and development partners.
“Malnutrition and food insecurity remain a constant threat to socio-economic development in Nigeria, as much as they have become an existential threat,” the chairman said.
He added that Nigeria had the arable land, water resources and human capital needed to tackle hunger and malnutrition if stakeholders worked together.
The committee disclosed that it had facilitated the establishment of nutrition and food security committees in 32 state Houses of Assembly following a legislative retreat in Owerri, Imo State.
It subsequently formed the National Legislative Network of Nutrition and Food Security, inaugurated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives on July 22, 2024.
Other participants at the briefing called for greater collaboration among farmers, investors, researchers, processors and distributors to improve food safety and strengthen Nigeria’s agricultural value chain.