Officials in Nigeria have confiscated 102 bags of “plastic rice” smuggled into the country.
The rice smuggled in by some businessmen were meant to be sold to consumers during the Christmas season.
A senior customs official, Haruna Mamudu said “Preliminary analysis of the “plastic rice, after boiling it, shows how sticky the rice was and only God knows what would have happened if our people consumed it”.
Investigations are ongoing to establish the magnitude of the presence of the rice on the market and possibly retrieve it.
Mr. Mamudu earlier told reporters in Lagos on Tuesday that, officials at Ikeja, seized no fewer than 102 bags of the plastic rice at a warehouse in Ikeja.
He called on “economic saboteurs who see yuletide season as a peak period for their nefarious acts to desist from such illegal” business activity.
Meanwhile in Ghana, there are heightened fears such “plastic rice” may be in circulation. But the Food and Drugs Authority there said there are no evidences to warrant any fears.
Source: Africafeeds.com