Business
Don Cautions On Washing Of Fruits, Vegetables
A university teacher, Dr Ikechi Agbugba has urged government at all levels and stakeholders to check traders’ use of soaps and detergents to wash fruits, vegetables and other agricultural produce because of their harmful effects on the body.
Agbugba, a lecturer at the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, gave the advice in an interview with newsmen in Lagos.
According to him, the traders use soaps in the open to remove dirt from the fruits and vegetables and some root crops and nuts.
“The use of detergent and soap in washing off dirt from fruits, vegetables and some agricultural produce is rampart, especially among retail traders in agricultural products.
“This should not even be mentioned but we see it every time.
“Soaps and detergents are chemicals and they are not friendly to the body.
“’Besides, they are not produced for washing any type of agricultural product and produce, but for washing cloths.
“People do this due to ignorance and those doing it should be enlightened to stop using them on fruits and vegetables,” he said.
Agbugba, who is also a vegetable expert, said that it was time consumers got involved and take seriously what they bought with their money for consumption.
He said that injecting such chemicals which could be avoided, was dangerous to health and contribute to funny illnesses people had to battle with in societies nowadays.
Agbugba said that in the olden days, parents use ordinary water to wash dirt off fruits, vegetables and tubers like carrots, potatoes and yams among others.
He added that they lived long and healthy lives without the illnesses prevalent in the society today.
The Lecturer said that traders and retailers could use ordinary water, foam and local sponge which were friendly to the body to wash dirt off their goods.
He said at times you see retailers immersing nut produce like groundnuts. and tiger nuts, in soapy and detergent water in the name of removing dirt from them.
According to him, the shell of the nuts absorb water and swell up fast as such once immersed in such water the inside will be affected automatically.
He said that the shell of most agricultural products were just like human skin and absorbed liquid fast.
Agbugba added that once the fruits, nuts, vegetables, root crops membrane absorbed the chemical it spread to their inner parts.
He said that relevant government agencies should enforce the laws on safe handling of agricultural produce and products and educate traders on hygienic ways of handling them for sale.
Agbugba said that market officials should also make it their duty to create awareness among their members to stop using detergents and soap to wash agricultural produce and products.
He said that it would be good also if the Consumer Rights Protection (CRP) left its comfortable offices and enter the market to counter the activity.
He said it would make them to have first hand experience of how the markets, where the consumers they were protecting were buying their food stuffs, looked like.
“Payment of tuition fees for undergraduate/postgraduate studies shall be subject to a maximum limit of $25,000.00 per semester,” the Manual states.
The expansion of international card limits also reflects growing confidence among lenders that foreign exchange liquidity has improved enough to support retail dollar transactions.
Speaking recently at the BusinessDay 14th Annual CEO Forum in Lagos, CBN Olayemi Cardoso, governor of the CBN said buying and selling activities now increasingly determine outcomes in the foreign exchange market, unlike in the past when market participants relied heavily on routine Central Bank interventions.
According to Cardoso, Nigeria’s net foreign exchange reserves have risen from just over $3 billion at the start of the reform programme to more than $40 billion, while gross reserves have climbed to about $52 billion, providing stronger confidence for investors and enabling the Central Bank to reserve interventions for periods of market stress rather than day-to-day liquidity management.
The restoration and expansion of international naira card spending limits are increasingly being seen as one of the clearest signs that the benefits of the CBN’s foreign exchange reforms are beginning to reach households, students and businesses making legitimate cross-border payments.
The Secretary-General and Chief Executive Officer, WEC, Dr Angela Wilkinson, disclosed this in a statement, last Thursday.
“Nigeria’s participation comes at a pivotal time as the country seeks to expand energy access, strengthen energy security, accelerate gas development and mobilise the capital required for industrialisation and sustainable economic growth.
“WEC Nigeria will convene leaders from across the energy ecosystem, apply the WEC’s globally recognised Energy Trilemma framework to Nigeria’s unique context, and promote evidence-based dialogue, practical collaboration and informed policymaking.
“It will also ensure that Nigerian and broader African perspectives contribute meaningfully to global energy conversations,” she said.
Wilkinson expressed confidence that Nigeria would play a significant leadership role at the World Energy Congress scheduled for Riyadh in April 2027 and beyond.
The statement also quoted the Chairman of WEC Nigeria, Isa, as describing the country’s participation as an opportunity to deepen national and African leadership within the global energy community through practical solutions tailored to regional development priorities.
He said the platform would promote collaboration across sectors and attract sustainable investments into Nigeria’s energy sector.
The Chief Executive Officer of WEC Nigeria, Wunti, was quoted in the statement as saying that the council would connect leadership, evidence and investment to build a secure, affordable and sustainable energy system.
“This system will be capable of driving economic growth and shared prosperity.”
According to him, the platform will also connect Nigerian institutions and businesses with international knowledge, technology, partnerships and investment opportunities through the World Energy Council’s global network.
Recall that WEC, founded in 1923, is the world’s oldest independent and impartial community of energy leaders and practitioners, advancing informed, collaborative and practical action across the global energy system.