Health

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Although street foods are very popular in many Nigerian cities, most of those who patromise them are not aware of the risks involved

|  By Chinwe Okafor  |  Jul. 22, 2013 @ 01:00 GMT

OBIMDI Ewuzie, a staff of Kenneth and Cole Communications firm, Apapa, Lagos, likes eating bean cake and pap for breakfast because the food is less expensive compared to those served in regular restaurants around town. Ewuzie doesn’t bother about breakfast until he gets to his office where he orders for his usual breakfast at a nearby ‘joint’. “I prefer eating from food vendors because I’m an early riser and wouldn’t be able to take breakfast at home before I rush out for work in the morning so as to beat the usual early morning traffic on the Lagos roads,” he said.

Wilson Ikokwu, a Lagos-based trader in Ikeja, usually takes the normal sliced fruits which are put in a tray and hawked around because he likes to start the day with fruits. He enjoys taking his lunch from food vendors popularly known as ‘Mama Put’ because it’s less expensive. “I am already attracted to the food, but my only fear is the unhealthy condition and environment where the foods are being prepared and sold,” he said.

Ewuzie and Ikokwu are patrons of local food vendors like millions of others. Though these foods are readily available, very economical and as tasty as those who patronise them say, but they are apparently ignorant of the health risks associated with the unhygienic environment in which they are being prepared. Studies have shown that there are many risks involved in eating from a roadside vended food because of food borne diseases which can be contacted from such unhealthy environment.

Obiora Ngadi, a doctor, said people who patronise street foods need to be aware of the dangers of eating or buying foods in an unclean environment because such foods could be contaminated by microorganisms which are present in the air, water and even on the hands of those who sell them. These microorganisms, he said, contaminate foods and anybody who eats them stands the risk of contacting food borne disease.

“These food vendors do not adhere to basic rules of hygiene in the preparation of their foods and even places where they sell the foods are very unhygienic .There are flies, mosquitoes, carbon fumes and dust in the air which settle on these foods and make them unhygienic for human health. Diseases like typhoid, dysentery, diarrhea and cholera could be contacted through these foods,” Ngadi said.

A lot of Nigerians patronise street food vendors when they are out of their homes because they see the ready-to-eat food or drink, cheap, compared to restaurant meals.  Ada Alaneme, another doctor,  with Imo State Teaching Hospital, Orlu, said that the consumption of badly exposed foods could be harmful as a result of other factors even unrelated to hygiene. She said that fruits that are being sold on the road sides are an open invitation to ailments. Alaneme, therefore advised fruit vendors to cover them properly when hawking.

Besides, she wants food vendors to be sensitised to make them aware of the risks surrounding the unhealthy foods they sell to people. Although, many consumers attach importance to hygiene in selecting vendors, some don’t care because they are unaware of the health hazards associated with street vended foods.

But, Chika John, a freight forwarder, said he has not fallen sick from eating roadside foods because he makes sure the environment where he eats or buys food from is clean and sound at all times. He only eats where they practice good food hygiene and also makes sure that the method of preparing the food is very clean. Toyese Elisha, a civil servant, said he is very mindful of where and how food is prepared. “The environment where the food is sold or cooked goes a long way to determine if I  will actually patronize the vendors. I am aware of the diseases I can contact when I eat in an unhygienic environment,” he said.

Iya Jumai, a popular street food seller at Festac town, who trains her children in school from the gains she makes from the cooked meals tries hard to keep her environment clean at all times to attract customers. She said she knows the health risks involved in preparing foods in an unclean environment. She recounts the ordeal she sometimes face in the hands of law enforcement agents who always come to humiliate and extort money from her. “I have no choice other than to give them money in order  to continue in the business and send my children to school, but I believe that it will soon come to an end when my children complete their education. I know that the future is so bright”, she said.

Regardless of attendant health risks, street foods remain popular, especially among youths not just in Nigeria but in many other developing countries. It requires low initial capital to start the business. The foods often found on the includes, barbecued meat known as suya, roasted yam or plantain, boiled and roasted corn, cut fruits put in trays as well as local restaurants known as ‘mama put’ where local delicacies are served. They are inexpensive, convenient and relatively, nutritious food centers for urban and rural people as well as a source of attractive varied foods for tourists.

It is also a major source of income for a large number of persons, particularly women and a chance for self-employment and the opportunity to develop business skills with low capital investment.

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