A civil society organisation, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has urged Nigerian government to fix the country’s food system attributing the population eating pattern to the rise in cancer sufferers.
CAPPA declared this in a statement its media and communications officer, Robert Egbe released on the occasion of the World Cancer Day, themed, ‘United by Unique,’ in which the non- profit organisation affirmed its solidarity with the global community to honour the millions affected by the disease.
“While advocating for personalised, patient-centred care, CAPPA called on Nigeria to also address the growing link between cancer and Nigeria’s broken food system,” the statement read in part.
The public interest organisation warned that cancer is no longer a distant threat in the country, but a growing epidemic with no fewer than 72,000 annual cancer-related deaths and over 120,000 new cases recorded annually.
It noted that while genetic and environmental factors play a role, increasing evidence linked the rise in colorectal, breast, and prostate cancers to the food Nigerians consume and how that food is produced.
“Consequently, CAPPA called on the federal and state governments to implement proactive measures to curb this public health crisis by fixing the cracks in our food system that are contributing to the rising burden of cancer and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Nigeria.
“These cracks include unrestricted marketing and consumption of ultra-processed foods, poor regulation of tobacco and emerging nicotine products marketing, and excessive consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and salt, among other major cancer and NCD risk factors.
“We urge the government to place renewed focus on strengthening its healthy food policies. These include stricter regulation of tobacco and nicotine products, an upward review of the tobacco control budget, the development of a national guideline to reduce salt consumption including implementation of mandatory salt targets for processed and pre-packaged foods, a review of the SSB tax from the current N10 per litre to 50 per cent of the final retail price of sugary drinks, restrictions on the marketing of unhealthy foods to children, and clear nutrition standards for schools, hospitals and other public institutions,” CAPPA urged.
