Parliament condemns food wastage by Nigerian elites

Nigerian lawmakers on Wednesday called on President Muhammadu Buhari to wade in on the waste of edible food items in the country.

The lawmakers said the rate at which some Nigerians destroy foods had become alarming in recent years, adding that it is deplorable to keep wasting food in harsh economic times.

The concern was raised by a lawmaker from Lagos, Rotimi Agunsoye, during today’s plenary at the House of Representatives.

Mr. Agunsoye said the House is very worried that affluent Nigerians are stocking foods at home while the poor continue to die of starvation.

“Food wastage thrives with lavish lifestyle of citizens who are well-to-do in the society,” Mr. Agunsoye said. “They buy what they would not eat, set a table they will not finish and throw more food away than they would ever need.”

The lawmaker said Nigerians waste about 1.3 billion tonnes of food annually, which contributes significantly to the global average of 30 per cent waste per year.

Mr. Agunsoye urged lawmakers to prevail on the Buhari administration to embark on a sensitisation campaign to make Nigerians eschew their food-wasting habits.

To further drive the message, the lawmakers urged the president to incorporate campaign against food waste in his ‘Change Begins with Me’ national orientation policies.

Speaker Yakubu Dogara ruled that the House accepted the motion.