The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) said Erisco Foods Limited Nagiko Tomato Mix is a registered product.
The agency said that it is with the registration number A8-7430 however, it is not yet on its database.
Adding that it was due to the backlog it has in actively updating the Registered Products on its Database.
Revealing this on our X handle on Saturday, NAFDAC said, Nagiko Tomato Mix was registered since 2021 and even with the sugar mix, it is safe for public consumption.
“The product in question – Nagiko Tomato Mix by Erisco Foods Limited with NAFDAC Registration Number A8-7430 is a registered product,” NAFDAC wrote.
“The product is not yet on our database due to a significant backlog. We are actively updating the Registered Products Database and addressing the backlog.The formulation of tomato paste and ketchup products with sugar is safe for consumption.
“Sugar is added to these products for a number of reasons, including but not limited to masking bitterness, enhancing colour and flavour, improving texture and taste consistency, and…..as a preservative. The safety limits of sugar in food products are determined by NAFDAC, and only sugar-containing products within these safety limits are approved by NAFDAC.”
This is coming after Ms Okoli, a random woman on Social Media said she had gone to the market on 16 September with the intention of buying Gino or Sonia brand of tomato paste but could not find them and wrote in a post that having later bought the Nagiko tomato mix which she had planned to use in making stew, it tasted too sugary.
“When I opened it, I decided to taste it, Omo! Sugar is just too much!” she wrote.
In the post, she urged other Facebook users to confirm if they had used the product before, apparently to ascertain if they had similar experiences.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that Ms Okoli was arrested on Sunday by operatives of police operatives in Lagos State, South-west Nigeria and transferred to Force Headquarters in Abuja for the review.
The Vanguard Newspaper reported that she was made to write an apology letter under duress.
Ms Okoli’s arrest was instigated by the manufacturer of the tomato paste, Erisco Foods Limited, who accused her of intentionally making the post “to mislead our esteemed customers and discredit” the company’s image. The founder has since boast to slam Ms Okoli with a N5bn suit.
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