The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has banned importation of Indomie noodles to Nigeria for allegedly containing ethylene oxide, a cancer-causing chemical.
The agency which disclosed that the chemical is allegedly a compound in Indomie’s “special chicken” flavour noodles, noted that the popular noodle is not registered with it.
Mojisola Adeyeye, NAFDAC director-general told newsmen on Monday that the agency started an investigation when it got wind of the recall of the products by Taiwan and Malaysia authorities.
She said the agency would begin random sample tests of the noodles and other brands from May 2.
“Tomorrow, May 2, 2023, NAFDAC’s food safety and applied nutrition directorate will randomly sample Indomie noodles (including the seasoning) from the production facilities while post-marketing surveillance directorate (will) samples from the markets,” she said.
“The compound of interest is ethylene oxide, so the Director, of Food Lab Services has been engaged. He is working on the methodology for the analysis.”
“Some health officials in Malaysia and Taiwan recently detected ethylene oxide, a compound in Indomie’s “special chicken” flavour noodles”.
Ethylene oxide is a colourless, odourless gas that is used to sterilise medical devices and spices and is said to be a cancer-causing chemical.
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The Ministry of Health in Malaysia noted that it examined 36 samples of instant noodles from different brands since 2022 and found that 11 samples contained ethylene oxide.
Both countries have since recalled the product.
The DG said the product is on the prohibition list of the federal government, adding that it is not registered by the agency and had been banned from importation to Nigeria years ago.
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