FDA steps up fight against food adulteration

THE Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has intensified food safety education among traders and food handlers at the Mallam Atta Market in Accra to address food contamination and the misuse of chemicals in food production and handling.

The initiative is part of the authority's activities to mark World Food Safety Day, observed annually on June 7, and aims to promote safe food-handling practices and reduce food-borne illnesses.

Speaking at an engagement with traders at the market in Accra on Friday, on the theme, “From Burden to Solution: Safe Food Everywhere,” the Director of Food Safety and Consumer Education at the FDA, Maureen Lartey, said the authority was continuing its public education efforts, particularly in the informal sector, where food safety concerns persisted.

She said the authority selected the market for the engagement after reporting a 100 per cent pass rate in screenings for Sudan dyes in palm oil in 2025.

Lartey said the FDA had worked with local assemblies and their environmental health officers to educate traders on safe food-handling practices and the importance of maintaining hygienic conditions.

She said although sustained public education had led to progress over the years, more needed to be done to improve compliance with food safety standards.

She identified food adulteration, including adding flour and coconut oil to peanut butter and the presence of yeast in corn and cassava dough, as concerns the authority was addressing.

According to her, the FDA was intensifying its efforts to educate traders and food handlers about such practices to protect consumers from potentially harmful products.

Lartey urged traders and consumers to buy food from safe, reliable sources, warning that some produce could contain high levels of pesticide residues because farmers misuse chemicals.

She cautioned traders to be careful when sourcing food for sale, especially from farmers known to misuse agrochemicals.