NAFDAC dismisses rumour of plastic fish in Nigeria

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has denied the wide speculation of existence of plastic fish in Nigeria.

In a statement signed by the Agency’s spokesman, Dr. Abubakar Jimoh, in Abuja on Thursday, the Agency stated that its finding followed “a thorough investigation and analysis of some unsuspected plastic fish samples’’ in its laboratory.

According to the statement, the investigation was triggered by a report from a Nigerian consumer in Abuja that he bought a fish and discovered that it refused to cook when it was set on fire for several minutes.

“The suspected sample of the fish, after thorough investigation, was confirmed to contain protein and fat which is normal to fish.

“The fish was, however, found to be unwholesome due to serious bacterial contamination, NAFDAC said.

“While encouraging Nigerians to watch carefully the kind of fish they buy, it is however important to stress that there is no plastic fish in Nigeria.’’

The management noted that few weeks ago, there had been the circulation of suspected plastic fish in some parts of the world on the social media but stressed that no single case had been found in Nigeria, so far.

The agency urged Nigerians to“report any suspected unwholesome product, including fish to the nearest NAFDAC office for further investigation’’.