As the toxicity associated with the misuse and abuse of pesticides escalates in Nigeria, the National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control [NAFDAC] has banned three of the major pesticides and initiated actions for the ban and phase out of 12 active ingredients and reclassification of four others.

The three major pesticides banned are paraquat, chlorpyrifos, and atrazine which are commonly used in homes and by farmers. The ban takes effect from 1st January 2024, 1st November 2024 and 1st January 2025 respectively.

As the Director General of NAFDAC, Professor, Mojisola Christianah Adeyeye makes this known, she lamented that the dangers posed by pesticides are of immense concern to the Agency and there has been recent concerns from stakeholders such as the report of the study conducted by Heinrich Boll Foundation; a non-governmental organisation that claimed that 40% of pesticides used in Nigeria had been banned in the EU.

“There was also an alert received from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) cautioning on the possibility that the European Union and United Kingdom were exporting banned Neonicotinoid Pesticides to Nigeria and other Poorer Countries. Emphasis was placed on Chlorpyrifos and its variants due to their harmful effects on humans, animals, beneficial insects, and the environment,” disclosed the DG.

“This necessitated the review and analysis of the list of registered pesticide and agrochemical active ingredients in the NAFDAC Registered Product Automated Database (NARPAD) vis-à-vis actives banned, non-approved or restricted in the European Union, other countries or by relevant international organisations.”

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Source: The Nation Newspaper

https://thenationonlineng.net/buyers-beware-most-pesticides-in-nigerian-markets-banned-in-europe/