FACT-CHECK: NO! Nigeria Instant Noodles does not cause cancer
Claim: A lady was seen on a post by an X handle user claiming that Nigerians are at risk of Cancer and Reproductive harm if they continue to eat Noodles
Verdict: FALSE!
Introduction:
A post found on X, posted by @TheBeninblogger, claims that Nigerians are at risk of Cancer and Reproductive issues if continuing the consumption of Noodles.
In her word which was in Nigeria pidgin and English reads “ You see bah unfortunately if you are Nigerian they will never tell you the truth, they will never tell you the truth and if anybody come out to tell you the truth they will threatening the person, they will arrest the person, they will jail the person, you see they will never tell you the truth, look at this ones they put warning, it is noodles they put their own warning if you like continue consuming, yes they paid so so so person to carry out… so so so company they paid, NAFDAC said NAFDAC said.. Nigeria will never tell you the truth, which agency do you have, which government do you have, do you have a government that want you to be alive, they will never tell you the truth continue…….”
The post seen gathered 198.6k views, 82 comments, 1.8k retweet, and 2.7likes has generated reactions from the comment section of where the video has seen the likes of @your_Favxparte, @nwankpadaniel, @DOchukenyi, @curious_solomon and @MiracleAbu26382.
So therefore, due to the popularity of the said fast food talked which many Nigerians consumed, our researcher at GovernmendCheck progress to check authenticity of the claim.
Verification
Google search on the brand name in the video found that Buldak Ramen is a South Korean brand of instant noodle, produced by Samyang Foods since April
2012 and was banned in Denmark.
Screenshot from the X video
Furthermore, for clarity, we visited the website of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control to see if there were any press statements or investigations on whether noodles truly cause cancer. On 22 June 2023, NAFDAC announced the outcome of our investigation into the presence of ethylene oxide or its metabolite in noodles and/or their seasonings. This was a result of the recall of special chicken-flavour instant noodles by the Ministries of Health in Malaysia and Taiwan due to the alleged presence of ethylene oxide.
Ethylene oxide is a chemical used in manufacturing plastics, detergents and adhesives.
It was gathered that samples of chicken-flavoured instant noodles of various brands (and the seasonings) were drawn from the production facilities across the country, and the finding shows that Noodles are safe to eat in Nigeria.
Conclusion
The findings from the above noodles in Nigeria are locally made and do not equate to the ones made out of the country, because every country has its regulatory standards. Therefore, the claim is False.
