Biochemists have warned farmers against using corrosive chemicals as fertilisers to hasten crop germination, saying the practice threatens food safety and could contaminate produce.
They explained that while fertilisers play a critical role in boosting agricultural produce, excessive application and poor regulation can lead to the accumulation of toxic residues in food.
The toxic residues, the biochemists said, have a potential long-term effect on human health, including hormonal disruption and organ damage.
Healthwise reports that experts have said the improper use of agrochemicals in farming poses a significant challenge to the quality and safety of the food produced and consumed by the majority of Nigerians.
According to them, consuming food contaminated by chemical residues without purifying them predisposes consumers to organ failures, cancers, cell disruption, infertility, and neurological challenges.
But reacting to the issue in an interview, the President of the Biochemistry Practitioners Association of Nigeria, Mr. Ikotun Olayemi, said planting with corrosive chemicals portends danger to human health.
Corrosive chemicals are substances that can damage or destroy other substances they come into contact with, and are immediately dangerous to living tissue.
He listed the health implications to include acute poisoning and long-term health consequences, adding that the toxins in the food are released into the human body’s circulatory system.
“The effect of toxins in the body’s circulatory system bio-transforms, contaminates blood vessels and some other sensitive organs, which reduces longevity,” the BPAN president said.
Olayemi explained that the health risks associated with chemicals in food depend on the type of chemical and the quantity of food consumed.
He advised that natural foods should be harvested in their natural state, as their components contain antioxidant content that helps the activity of body organs.
Olayemi urged farmers to refrain from using corrosive chemicals as fertiliser to hasten the germination of agricultural foods.
The BPAN president explained that while there is a need for intensification of food production to meet the demands of a growing population, there was need for strict monitoring to ensure farmers adopt safer alternatives.
He noted that ensuring food quality and safety is as important as increasing yield.
Olayemi urged the regulatory agencies to sensitise farmers on the dangers of utilising toxic substances for food production to prevent untimely deaths.
The United States National Pesticide Centre said no method of purifying chemical residues can prove 100 per cent effective, hence the need to regulate chemical use.
The centre noted that washing with water only reduces dirt, germs, and pesticide residues remaining on fresh fruit and vegetable surfaces.
In an earlier interview with Healthwise, an Agro expert, Dr Samuel Nwakonobi, said harmful pesticides are a problem due to their tendency to bioaccumulate in human cell membranes and disrupt the body’s function.
He noted that the widespread use of these chemicals has resulted in fatalities and complications.
Nwakonobi stated that the numerous adverse health effects associated with chemical exposure can be short-term and long-term, adding that short-term exposure can negatively affect the liver, kidneys, blood, lungs, neurological system, immunological system, and digestive system.