Nigerians have been urged not to store cooked food in the refrigerator for longer than three days by Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, the Director General of the National Agency for Food and Administration and Control, or NAFDAC.

Sayo Akintola, the agency’s resident media consultant, issued a statement on Tuesday announcing this.

The organisation issued a warning that cooked food kept in the fridge for several days could get contaminated by microorganisms that cause illness, which could result in foodborne illnesses that are fatal.

She (NAFDAC FG) warned Nigerians not to keep cooked food in the refrigerator for longer than three days, pointing out that this practice puts food at risk of contamination by disease-causing pathogens, which are major contributors to foodborne illnesses that can be fatal.

The DG urged participants in the food supply chain to make deliberate efforts to establish a food safety culture in their operations in order to reduce food hazards and risks that could compromise food safety. The DG made this appeal while speaking at the 2024 World Food Safety Day, which had as its theme, “Food Safety: Prepare for the Unexpected.”

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She emphasised that everyone, from producers to consumers, must do their share to maintain food safety, noting that it is crucial for both public health and economic growth.

As we commemorate this year’s World Food Safety Day, let us all uphold the maxims “food safety is a shared responsibility” and “food safety is everyone’s business.”

“Together, we will persist in fortifying our food safety framework, guaranteeing its adaptability, durability, and readiness for unforeseen circumstances,” she declared.

The World Health Organisation estimates that consuming contaminated food causes illnesses in 600 million people worldwide, or nearly one in ten people, and 420,000 deaths annually, taking 33 million years of healthy life away.