The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) has confirmed that the six persons who lost their lives at Akakpokope in the Volta region after consuming banku and okro soup died as a result of food poisoning.
Samples of the food which the deceased ate were taken to the FDA Quality Control Laboratory on Monday 5 March 2018 for analysis of which part of the samples were sent to the Ghana Standards Authority (GSA).
After several tests, the FDA later found the presence of chlorpyrifos, a toxic substance commonly used in pesticides in the samples of the banku and dough.
A statement signed by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of FDA, Delese Darko, said “laboratory results from the GSA on the 13th of March, 2018 indicated the presence of Chlorpyrifos” in the banku and okro that was consumed by the six deceased persons.
The statement added that “the FDA is not mandated to determine the cause of death. This can only be established after a pathological investigation”.
According to Mr. Darko, the FDA will forward the findings to the Public Health Directorate of the Ghana Health Service for further action.
Earlier in March, some four persons died at Akakpokope, a village in the South Tongu District of the Volta Region, after consuming popular delicacy, banku and okro soup.
Reports suggested that the victims belonged to two separate families who coincidentally seemed to have eaten the same meal.
The incident sparked uproar across the nation after two others also died later, bringing the number of deaths to six.
Further reports suggested that that was not the first time such an incident was happening in the community, which led to the FDA taking the matter up.
-pulse.com.gh
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