FG directs Abia to site veterinary clinic at Lokpanta market, warns of public health risks
Federal Ministry of Livestock Development Issues Warning on Meat Safety
The Federal Ministry of Livestock Development has raised concerns over the potential health risks posed by the absence of veterinary clinics and regulatory personnel at livestock markets and abattoirs. The lack of oversight could lead to the sale of diseased and unsafe meat to consumers.
Mr. Gilbert Okoro, Team Lead of the Tsetse Fly Surveillance and Control Project, made these remarks during a recent verification exercise in Abia State aimed at assessing tsetse fly infestation levels in the region.
Following the exercise, the ministry urged the Abia state government to establish additional veterinary clinics to support existing facilities. The recommendation stems from intelligence gathered regarding the operations at the Lokpanta Cattle Market, believed to be the largest livestock trading hub in southern Nigeria.
Okoro emphasized the necessity of these clinics to protect consumers from meat derived from unhealthy livestock. He characterized the failure to establish a federal veterinary clinic at Lokpanta, which had originally been allocated for the site, as a significant oversight that could compromise public health.
“Lokpanta serves as a critical cattle marketing hub, with livestock from across the southern region passing through before distribution to other states in the South-East and South-South,” Okoro stated.
He highlighted the urgent need for ongoing tsetse fly control, citing a concerning rise in tsetse fly populations detected during the surveillance. Okoro called for the implementation of control programs in affected areas and reiterated the importance of establishing more veterinary clinics, noting that such measures would not impose a heavy financial burden on the state while significantly enhancing public health safety.