Oil-Palm Growers Association of Nigeria (OPGAN) has warned Nigerians to be wary of excessively red palm oil in the market, as it might have been adulterated.
National President of OPGAN, Mr Joe Onyiuke, gave the warning on Tuesday in Calabar, in an interview.
Onyiuke said that chemicals were used to adulterate palm oil to get its reddishness, which looked so enticing.
According to him, a good palm oil is not that bright, which makes it a little less enticing to the eye.
“Although it is important that we know this; we need to also go beyond just using our eyes to certify which oil is good for consumption by standardising and certifying people, whether they are sellers or producers.
“We have the problem of middlemen who buy this product from our farmers at a very cheap price and mix it with other chemicals because they want to maximise profit.
“We are working with the Ministries of Agriculture, Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and the Ministry of Trade and Investment, to ensure that we set enforceable standards and sensitise Nigerians,” he said.
Speaking further, Onyiuke called on oil-palm growers to engage in climate smart agriculture, which gives more produce to the farmer, and at the same time protects the environment from degradation.
He asserted that imbibing best management practices would help them get more yield in the same parcel of land they have been using instead of them going to clear virgin forests for agriculture, which enhances deforestation.
“By adhering to the principles of climate smart agriculture, we make more profit following the trainings we have received on the European Union deforestation regulation (EUDR).
“In the past, many of our farmers just planted tree crops without maintenance, and after a while they keep on expanding without getting returns from the initial plantation when they can make optimum benefits of their existing plantation,” he said.
He commended Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River, who, according to him, was the only governor to buy 3.5 million oil-palm seeds from the Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR), to support the production of palm oil.
“By the time they are able to raise the seeds to seedlings, the farmers in Cross River will be able to go back and replant, because what they have at the moment are old plantations with very old trees.”
NAN
