The National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), has warned dealers of substandard breast milk substitutes (SMB) to desist continued violation of the accepted international code of marketing the products.
Bauchi State NDLEA coordinator, Mrs Josephine Dayilim gave the warning during a one-day orientation for media practitioners and social media influencers to amplify Maternal, Infant and Young Child Nutrition (MIYCN) activities organised by ‘Alive and Thrive.’
Mrs Dayilim said the agency would not hesitate to prosecute anyone found culpable of selling SMB products against the accepted global standards stressing that NAFDAC would prosecute and ensure that violators were jailed for a period of two years if found guilty.
The coordinator added that companies and individuals found guilty would also forfeit the offending items.
She said the implementation of the code was designed to protect, promote and support breastfeeding and prevent health caregivers from aggressive marketing of breast milk substitutes by infant food manufacturers.
The coordinator noted that a lack of awareness of stakeholders, including the media, had also contributed to the gravity of violations currently being practiced.
Mrs Dayilim appealed to journalists to report such cases of violators and create awareness of the code of marketing of breast milk substitutes.
State focal person, Alive and Thrive FHI360, Mr Asimobi Chidi called on the public to desist from promoting breast milk substitutes as food for infants less than six months and also go for local complimentary meals after six months.
He noted that BMS deny infants the benefit of the protective supplements in mothers’ breast milk and faces the danger of eating contaminated products.
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