CAPPA URGES STRONGER FOOD POLICIES AS NIGERIA FACES RISING DIET-RELATED ILLNESSES

CAPPA URGES STRONGER FOOD POLICIES AS NIGERIA FACES RISING DIET-RELATED ILLNESSES
By Prince Benson Davies

As the world observed World Food Safety Day on June 7, 2026, with the theme “From Burden to Solutions – Safe Food Everywhere,” Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa has called on Nigerian authorities to adopt tougher healthy food policies. The group said protecting citizens from diet-related diseases must now sit alongside efforts to prevent food contamination and adulteration.

CAPPA explained that food safety goes beyond preventing foodborne illnesses. It also includes ensuring that the foods and drinks widely available to Nigerians do not expose them to dangerous levels of salt, sugar, unhealthy fats and additives. These ingredients, the organisation noted, are key drivers of non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity, stroke, kidney disease and some cancers that are placing growing pressure on households and the health system.

In a statement issued to mark the day, CAPPA’s Executive Director, Akinbode Oluwafemi, said Nigeria’s food environment is changing rapidly. He pointed to increased consumption of ultra-processed foods and beverages, weak regulatory oversight, and industry practices that put commercial gain ahead of public health. According to him, moving from burden to solutions requires policies that put people’s wellbeing before corporate profits.

The organisation welcomed the recent passage of a revised Sugar-Sweetened Beverage tax bill by the Nigerian Senate. CAPPA described it as an important step toward reducing excessive sugar intake and its health impacts. It urged the House of Representatives to quickly pass the bill and forward it to the President for assent so Nigeria can strengthen one of the most effective tools for preventing NCDs.

Oluwafemi said global evidence shows that taxes on sugary drinks lower consumption, push manufacturers to reformulate products, and raise revenue that governments can reinvest in health programmes. He added that similar action is needed on sodium. CAPPA renewed its call for a national sodium reduction target, warning that high salt intake remains a major contributor to hypertension and cardiovascular disease across the country.

The group also pushed for Front-of-Pack Warning Labelling on packaged foods and drinks. It said clear labels that highlight excess salt, sugar or unhealthy fats help consumers make better choices and create pressure on manufacturers to improve formulations. CAPPA added that Nigerians have a right to understand what they are eating without needing specialized knowledge.

Protecting children from aggressive marketing was another focus of CAPPA’s message. The organisation asked regulators to impose strict limits on the promotion of unhealthy foods and drinks to young people across television, digital platforms, schools and sports. It said children should not be exposed to marketing designed to shape their preferences toward products that damage long-term health.

CAPPA also cautioned against using fortification of high-salt products such as bouillon cubes as a public relations strategy. While it acknowledged the need to address micronutrient deficiencies, it warned that adding vitamins and minerals should not be used to present unhealthy products as healthy. Oluwafemi stressed that nutrition and safety policies must be guided by independent science, not by industry influence.

The organisation compared current resistance to food policy reforms with tactics once used by the tobacco industry to delay regulation. It said the ultra-processed food industry is using similar arguments around economic harm and voluntary action to weaken measures like warning labels, sodium targets, marketing restrictions and stronger beverage taxes. CAPPA insisted that public health policy must be shaped by science and the public interest, just as Nigeria did when it excluded tobacco companies from tobacco control decisions.

CAPPA called on the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, NAFDAC, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, lawmakers, consumer groups and health advocates to deepen collaboration. It said safer food environments require coordinated action across government and civil society.

Closing its message, CAPPA said World Food Safety Day should remind Nigerians that safe food means more than food free from contamination. Safe food, it stated, is food that nourishes the body, protects health, and helps prevent diseases that are becoming all too common.