The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has said that it will investigate reports of a cancer-causing ingredient detected in Indomie noodles.
The decision by Malaysia and Taiwan to recall Indomie’s special chicken flavor noodles has sparked some concerns about the food’s safety around the world, particularly in Nigeria.
The development came after health organizations in both countries discovered ethylene oxide, a carcinogen, in the product.
Nigeria, in response to the development, directed the standards agency to undertake further independent tests on the affected products.
This was made known on Sunday by the country’s National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), stating its plans to ascertain the claim by its Taiwan and Malaysian counterparts.
The health department in Taipei, Taiwan’s capital said it detected ethylene oxide in two types of instant noodles, including the Indomie chicken flavour, following random inspections.
It said the detection of ethylene oxide in the product did not comply with standards.
“The Taipei City Health Bureau reminds food industry that our country has not approved the use of ethylene oxide as a pesticide, nor has it approved the use of ethylene oxide gas as a disinfection purpose,” the department said in a statement.
“The industry is sure to implement autonomous management and confirm that the raw materials and products should comply with food safety and health management.”
Following this development, the health ministry in Malaysia said it had examined 36 samples of instant noodles from different brands since 2022 and found that 11 samples contained ethylene oxide.
Ethylene oxide is a colourless, odourless gas that is used to sterilize medical devices and spices and has been described as a cancer-causing chemical.
The Malaysian ministry said it had taken enforcement actions and recalled the affected products.
Indofoods, an Indonesian company and maker of Indomie instant noodles, has denied the allegations noting that all its noodles are produced with standard certification. However, Taiwan and Malaysia have ordered businesses to immediately remove the products from their shelves.
Mojisola Adeyeye, NAFDAC director-general, said the agency would begin random sample tests of the noodles and other brands from May 2.
Speaking with Journalists, Adeyeye said the NAFDAC started investigating once it got wind of the recall of the products by Taiwan and Malaysia authorities.
“Tomorrow, May 2, 2023, NAFDAC’s food safety and applied nutrition directorate will randomly sample Indomie noodles (including the seasoning) from the production facilities while post marketing surveillance directorate (will) samples from the markets,” she said.
“The compound of interest is ethylene oxide, so the director, food lab services directorate has been engaged. He is working on the methodology for the analysis.”
The DG said the product is on the prohibition list of the federal government, adding that it is not registered by the agency and had been banned from importation to Nigeria years ago.
She said NAFDAC is working to ensure that the product is not being smuggled and that the feedback from the investigations would be communicated to the public.
“It should be noted that Indomie noodles have been banned from being imported into the country for many years. It is one of the foods on the government prohibition list. It is not allowed in Nigeria, and therefore not registered by NAFDAC,” the NAFDAC DG told TheCable.
“What we are doing is an extra caution to ensure that the product is not smuggled in and if so, our post-marketing surveillance would detect it. We also want to be sure that the spices used for the Indomie and other noodles in Nigeria are tested.
“That is what NAFDAC food safety and applied nutrition (FSAN) and post-marketing surveillance (PMS) are doing this week at the production facilities and in the market respectively. The public will be duly updated with the outcomes of the investigation.”
The World Instant Noodles Association (WINA) says Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, is currently among the largest consumers of instant noodles with 1.92 million servings as of May 2020.
The country also ranked 11th in the global demand for noodles, with Indomie instant noodles being the most consumed brand in Nigeria.