A poultry expert, Mr Oduware Efe, has warned against the negative effect of imported frozen chicken consumption and encouraged Nigerians to patronise locally processed chicken.
Oduware, made this call in Lagos.
He said that there were multiple inherent dangers of consuming imported frozen chicken because of the chemical used in their preservation process.
“There are so many negative effects of consuming imported frozen chicken as it relates to health. Generally, they are not healthy for consumption in comparison to freshly prepared chicken.
“It has been analysed by NAFDAC, University of Ibadan and other research institutes across the country that the chemicals used in the preservation of these imported chicken are dangerous to the health.
“These preservatives are done in these foreign countries to make sure the chickens have a longer shelf life so it does not get contaminated.
“However, the issue of storage and cold-chain transportation will make the chickens lose their value following hitches encountered during transportation.
“The chemicals used to preserve dead bodies are the same being used to preserve the imported frozen chicken. The preservatives in the chicken contain heavy metals that are not good for the body.
“These metals have a negative ripple effect on our internal organs for such as kidneys, liver and even the lungs,” he said.
Oduware also harped on the negative impact of consuming frozen imported chicken on the economy, calling on Nigerians to appreciate locally processed chicken in spite of the cost.
“The consumption of imported frozen chicken also has a negative impact on the economy of the country.
“When we import, we take jobs from Nigerians who are involved in the poultry value chain which involves production, processing, and marketing of locally bred chicken.
“We are killing the local economy when we consume imported frozen chicken; we have to preserve the jobs of these Nigerians by patronising our locally processed chicken.
“Although frozen chicken has been listed among banned goods by the government, we still see them smuggled into the country, the government should put in place strict measures to curtail it.
“The problem is that Nigerian consumers have a penchant for imported frozen chicken because of its hard meat, and low-income earners prefer it because of its affordability.
“Most of the imported frozen birds are offal, which is the rejected ones from their processing farms which they do not want to circulate in their market,” Oduware said.