The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has launched a nationwide “Read the Food Label” campaign to encourage Nigerians to check food labels before buying packaged foods as part of efforts to reduce diet-related diseases.
Speaking at the campaign’s launch in Abuja on Friday, NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, said food labels are powerful public health tools that help consumers make informed decisions about what they eat.
She urged Nigerians to pay close attention to ingredients, nutrition information and the levels of sugar, salt, saturated fat and trans fat in packaged foods.
“Before you buy it, read it. Before you eat it, understand it,” she said, stressing that reading food labels should become a habit for every household.
Adeyeye said the campaign became necessary because of the growing burden of diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Nigeria, including hypertension, diabetes, obesity, stroke and heart disease.
She said the World Health Organisation estimates that non-communicable diseases account for about 29 per cent of all deaths in Nigeria, with unhealthy diets and excessive consumption of salt, sugar and highly processed foods contributing significantly to the problem.
She said the agency was already working with food manufacturers to gradually reduce salt levels in processed foods while strengthening compliance with food labelling regulations.
The campaign, she added, will include regular monitoring of food labels, public awareness programmes, and nutrition education through NAFDAC Consumer Safety Clubs and community development initiatives.
Adeyeye also said the agency would ensure food label information is simple and accessible, especially for people with low literacy levels and other vulnerable groups.
The Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) welcomed the initiative, describing it as a timely intervention that would help consumers identify products high in sugar, salt and unhealthy fats.
CAPPA’s Executive Director, Akinbode Oluwafemi, represented by Abayomi Sarumi, said Nigerians are increasingly exposed to aggressively marketed ultra-processed foods, making food label literacy a public health necessity.
Also speaking, Executive Director of Resolve to Save Lives Nigeria, Mrs. Nanlop Ogbureke, said the campaign would improve consumer awareness and help Nigerians make healthier food choices as the country battles the rising burden of diet-related diseases.