Toxic cattle ponmo has flooded the Market warns health practioner

 

MANY lovers of ponmo in Nigeria are, at present, in a dilemma as health officials warn that toxic cattle hides likened to leather have flooded the country’s markets.

The Ogun State Commissioner for Agriculture, Ronke Sokefun, who raised the alarm, warned residents of the state that the markets were flooded with ponmo reportedly processed with industrial chemicals such as biocides and fungicides.

The killer ponmo, Sokefun added, were allegedly imported from Japan, Italy, Sudan and some other African and European countries.

She said, “What is being sold is raw hide meant for leather production. These hides are often brownish, foul-smelling, abnormally thick with layers and ridiculously cheap compared to the certified ponmo.”

Meanwhile, the imported ponmo ‘fever’ may have spread to neighbouring states as our correspondents, who visited major markets in Bariga and Ikeja, both in Lagos, observed that many food vendors were selling cattle hides that fit into Sokefun’s description of the toxic species.

One of the ponmo sellers at Bariga market said there were two species of cattle hides in the market.

Displaying some of the items, she said, “We have the soft ones (ponmo dudu) and the very thick ones. However, many people prefer the thick ones because they do not get soft easily when cooked unlike the soft black ones. The former is also cheaper. While the thick ones sell for N100, the soft ones go for N200.”

On how she sources the animal skin, the woman explained that she bought them from a wholesaler who supposedly bought them from another state.

But according to some food vendors at the Ipodo Market, under the bridge in Ikeja, they usually buy the items from two major traders, who supply them every week.

One of them said, “We used to go to Oyo State or the Cattle Market on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway to get ponmo. However, for the thick ones, the suppliers have a way of supplying us the items.

She said, “We know that they are not of a fine quality but they are cheaper and people usually ask for them. This species became very popular since last year.”

Meanwhile, as the demand for the popular staple meat that many families use to prepare ogbonno, egusi, and efo riro is on the increase, nutritionists have maintained that it adds no nutritional value to the body.

According to a nutritionist with the Garki General Hospital, Abuja, Dr. Oluyemisi Olowokeere, the amount of tanning chemicals used in processing ponmo gives her concern.

She said there was the tendency that those who ate ponmo might be ingesting a unhealthy quantity of chemicals such as fungicides and biocides used to processing the meat.

Olowokere said, “A lot of trash, wood, charcoal, tyres, among others, are thrown into the furnace to sustain the heat used to tan cowhides to make them edible.

“When you eat ponmo, there is the tendency that you are consuming the chemicals directly because the skin part of the animal retains most of the harmful substances,’’

In a related development, the Ogun State Government, in collaboration with the National Agency for Food Drugs and Administration and Control, has launched a discreet investigation to fish out importers of the toxic cowhides.

The NAFDAC state Coordinator, Mr. Ugochukwu Ilo, who visited some markets in the Abeokuta metropolis, said investigation was ongoing.

He said, “NAFDAC in Lagos is currently investigating an importer and the sample (of the toxic ponmo) has been taken to the laboratory for analysis to see exactly what they did.”

The Director, Veterinary Services, Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Dotun Shorunke, also said that veterinary doctors had been deployed in the various markets to ensure compliance.