The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has warned against eating animal hides, also known as Ponmo which are pre-treated with industrial chemicals, and injurious to human health.
NAFDAC advises the general public to be careful of the consumption of animal hides, which were not of food grade and were toxic.
A statement signed by the Director General (DG) of the agency, Mrs Mojisola Adeyeye, stated that most of those animal hides were meant for industrial use.
According to Adeyeye,
investigations have revealed that some companies legally imported hides from countries like Lebanon and Turkey, while majority of the product were smuggled into the country through the porous borders.
“The Management of NAFDAC wishes to use this medium to alert the general public and in particular consumers of animal hides popularly known as Ponmo on the activities of some unscrupulous business men and traders.
“These imported animal hides are meant for industrial use by leather industries for the manufacturing of items such as shoes, bag, belt and others.
“Health hazards inherent in the consumption of such animal hides include risk of liver, kidney and heart damage, increased risk of Aplastic anaemia, central nervous system toxicity, cancer and many more,’’ she said.
The DG also said live stock farmers were also advised to note that industrial animal hides could not be used to manufacture animal feeds.
