ALERT: Lagos agency cries out over cancer-linked chemicals in palm oil

The Lagos State Consumer Protection Agency (LASCOPA) has warned residents against buying suspected adulterated palm oil as it intensifies surveillance of markets across the state.

According to Sahara Reporters, the warning followed a presentation at the Lagos State Food Safety Conference and Exhibition, where Dr Nurah Oseni, a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Food Technology, Auchi Polytechnic, highlighted emerging methods used to adulterate palm oil.

Oseni, in a paper titled, “Palm Oil Adulteration: Emerging Risks, Detection Strategies and Regulatory Control,” said palm oil was vulnerable to adulteration due to its high trading volume, consumers’ preference for deep-red colour and price differences. She warned that some adulterators use potentially carcinogenic Sudan and Azo dyes to deepen the oil’s colour, while others mix it with recovered or spent cooking oil.

The expert advised consumers to conduct visual checks, noting that genuine palm oil may separate into layers, with the lower layer appearing orange to red-yellowish rather than uniformly deep red. However, she cautioned that visual inspection alone cannot confirm adulteration.

LASCOPA General Manager, Afolabi Solebo, urged residents to report suspected cases through the agency’s official channels. He said surveillance had been intensified and warned that traders found selling adulterated palm oil would be arrested and prosecuted under relevant laws.