Stakeholders Warn Against Harmful Chemicals in Fruit Ripening

By Oggorchukwu Oranu

Stakeholders in Anambra State have urged fruit sellers, farmers and consumers to avoid the use of harmful chemicals to ripen or preserve fruits and vegetables, warning of possible health risks.

A staff of the Agricultural Department in Idemili North Local Government Area, Mrs Anthonia Obichukwu, said indiscriminate use of agrochemicals could leave harmful residues on food, urging government to intensify sensitisation of farmers and food vendors on safer practices.

A plantain seller at Coke’s Market, Onitsha, Mrs Rose Igbo, said fruits such as bananas and plantains could be ripened naturally without chemicals, while other traders condemned the use of poisonous substances for profit.

The Chief Medical Director of Holy Rosary Specialist Hospital, Onitsha, Dr Christopher Odikpo, also advised consumers to wash fruits thoroughly before eating them and cautioned against excessive exposure to chemical ripeners.

The stakeholders called for stricter monitoring of the use of chemicals in food production and preservation to protect public health.