/ 30 June 1999

NIGERIA BANS BELGIAN FOODS

NIGERIA has banned the importation of chicken, poultry and dairy products from Belgium, claiming they are not fit for human consumption, a top official said in reports on Wednesday. Gabriel Osuide, director general of the state-run National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control told reporters on Tuesday that the ban was necessitated by the contamination of certain products in Belgium. He said his agency had deployed health inspectors to the ports to “put on hold” any such consignments from Belgium. He also warned against the consumption of imported Coca-Cola, saying that only that produced locally could be guaranteed by the agency. Last week, some European countries banned the consumption of Coca-Cola because of reported cases of contamination.