Anytime i mention the fact that I wish I can grow at least 60% of my own food organically , people think I am joking, they conclude by saying I have too many weird ideas. As a matter of fact my hubby can't wrap his head around this slight obsession of mine. I keep dreaming about my own garden. However, I cannot wait to start, space being the only constraint for now. Although my flower pots will be the starting point.
What inspired this post? You might ask. Well, look no further, it is the news of these three criminals whose picture appears above, they are said to be foodstuff traders caught preserving the beans they intend to sell to the populace with Sniper, a very deadly insecticide. They were arrested around the Alagbado axis of Lagos, where they ply their trade. To further complicate issues, they confess it is almost an age long practice and their suppliers up North are also in the business of using Sniper and other poisonous chemicals on not only beans,but other foods.We can call it ignorance, we can give this act whatever name we wish to, but the truth is the mortality rate is this country is tied directly or indirectly to what we consume.
See the way Nigerians are being killed one derica or Congo of beans at a time. No wonder the upsurge in cases of kidney failures and other diseases. No wonder The United Kingdom, some months back rejected Beans coming into their country from Nigeria, stating that they are not safe for consumption,due to the high amount of pesticides found in them. Reading through comments on different platforms online about this issue, I realized most people are aware of these unsafe practices. And typical of an average Nigerian, most are unperturbed, I saw comments like 'It is one thing that will kill someone' or ' Are we just eating beans,why are we not dead yet'. So much deliberate ignorance if you ask me.
Is there any food safe for consumption in this country? Palm Oil is being adulterated, Garri, just name it. News of excessive Benzoic acid in some particular soft drinks is still fresh in our memories and the news has not quite abated, now this. What about the chemical used in preserving our dearly beloved frozen foods, the frozen Chicken and Turkey we all love so much.Oh, so many other scary tales of unhealthy food practices abound. One wonders What can be done to curb these dangerous menace. We all eat these foods with so much glee and satisfaction.
Consequently, we need to ask, is it that the Farmers need reorientation? Under whose purview should the monitoring of food preservation be? What is the Ministry of Agriculture doing about this? These and many more are questions that Nigerians demand answers for, because until safety is ensured, Nigerians will keep being fed with poisonous chemicals under the guise of food Presevatives.
2 comments:
I'm in support of your lovely idea of cultivating what you and your household consume.
I once saw a video of a group of persons filling empty plastics of Cway, which is meant for dispensers, with tap. That dared the hell outta me because that's what we consume both at work and home. More people are getting greedy day after day. May God keep protecting us all
The greed has reached a crazy height,people are ready to harm others for profit.
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