GMO Foods Are Safe But Must Be Labelled, Says NAFDAC

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has reaffirmed the safety of genetically modified foods in Nigeria, while emphasizing the importance of clear labelling to ensure consumers are fully informed. NAFDAC’s Director-General, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, made this known during an interview on Channels Television’s *Sunrise Daily*, amid growing public concern over the presence and quality of GMO products in local markets.

“GMOs are not bad for us,” Adeyeye stated, noting that the safety of these foods depends on their type and whether all safety requirements have been met. She explained that NAFDAC works closely with the National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA), the body legally mandated to ensure the safety of GMO foods. “We collaborate with NBMA. We have an MoU with them. They are mandated to ensure that foods with GMOs are of quality, safe, and efficacious,” she said.

Adeyeye also highlighted the role of food labelling in helping Nigerians make informed choices. As a self-described “food freak,” she said she personally checks product labels to ensure proper certification. “It’s supposed to have ‘genetically modified food’ written on it,” she noted, urging Nigerians to look out for NAFDAC-approved labels and to exercise their freedom to choose between organic and GMO products.

She added that while NAFDAC ensures approved foods are safe, state agencies also play a key role in the broader monitoring of food items across the country. “For NAFDAC, we are mandated to ensure that the food we approve for the market is safe, of quality, and efficacious. But other agencies at the state level have their responsibilities as well,” she said.

The NAFDAC boss’s remarks come in response to recent public debates and media coverage questioning the safety and regulation of GMO foods in Nigeria. Just last month, the National Biotechnology Research and Development Agency (NBRDA) also weighed in, stating that GMO crops are crucial to addressing Nigeria’s food insecurity and improving agricultural productivity.

NBRDA Director General, Abdullahi Mustapha, while addressing journalists at a sensitisation workshop in Abuja, said misinformation and false claims about GMOs have hindered their acceptance and slowed technological progress. “In today’s digital age, the distortion of facts has become a major barrier to the acceptance of science,” Mustapha told the gathering, adding that GMOs hold significant potential to transform agriculture and improve lives.