Osinbajo Reveals Wife’s ‘Healthy’ Orange Juice Tested Unsafe, Warns Nigerians Over Chemicals Used on Fruits

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Former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has raised fresh concerns over food safety in Nigeria after revealing that laboratory tests on freshly squeezed orange juice regularly consumed by his wife, Dolapo Osinbajo, reportedly found the drink “not fit for human consumption.”

Osinbajo made the disclosure in Lagos on August 28, 2026, while speaking at the Open Day of the Gardeners’ Seminar, themed “Leaving the Earth Better Than We Found It.”

The former vice president used the personal experience to draw attention to what he described as the growing danger posed by chemicals used at different stages of Nigeria’s food supply chain.

According to Osinbajo, his wife had developed the habit of drinking a full glass of freshly squeezed orange juice every day after stopping her consumption of carbonated drinks.

“Dolly, my dear wife, she always likes to have a full glass of freshly squeezed orange juice every day. A very healthy habit, by the way… especially because she stopped drinking Coke, Fanta, or any of those carbonated drinks,” he said.

However, Osinbajo said the seemingly healthy routine was followed by the emergence of unexplained headaches.

“After a while, she started having some strange headaches, drinking her fresh juice every day. Then she checked everything she was eating or drinking… Of course, it couldn’t possibly be the healthy orange juice,” he recalled.

After other possible causes were considered, Osinbajo said his wife decided to send a sample of the juice for laboratory testing.

He said the result was alarming, with the juice reportedly declared “not fit for human consumption.”

Osinbajo then joked about his own preference for carbonated drinks, telling the audience: “She should have just stayed with Coke, right?” His remark drew laughter from those present.

But behind the humour was a serious warning about the safety of food consumed by Nigerians every day.

Osinbajo said some farmers use potentially harmful pesticides, while some fruit traders allegedly apply chemicals to accelerate ripening, extend shelf life or make produce appear fresher and more attractive to consumers.

He particularly raised concerns about calcium carbide, a substance that has been associated with the artificial ripening of fruits such as bananas, mangoes and pawpaw.

He also referred to surveys in which traders reportedly mentioned substances including gamma-lin-20, Sniper, phosphite, DDT and brodifacoum in connection with the treatment or preservation of produce.

Some of the substances mentioned are highly toxic and are not intended for direct application to food.

To demonstrate the extent of the problem, Osinbajo cited studies conducted in different parts of the country. He said a 2024 survey in Ado-Ekiti found that 10 out of 20 fruit sellers interviewed admitted using calcium carbide, while a study in Uyo reportedly found that 25 per cent of sellers surveyed used the chemical.

He further cited a 2023 Lagos survey involving 50 fruit and vegetable retailers, saying 22 respondents, representing more than 40 per cent, admitted using chemicals to preserve produce.

“This is almost like an epidemic,” Osinbajo said.

“The fact that fruit looks fresh doesn’t mean that it is safe. And the fact that a drink is natural doesn’t mean that something dangerous has not been added to it along the way… from the farm to the table.”

The former vice president called for stronger regulation and enforcement by relevant government agencies, as well as better education for farmers and traders on safer methods of preserving and ripening food.

He also urged consumers to become more vigilant by thoroughly washing fruits and vegetables, asking questions about how produce is handled and reporting suspicious practices to the appropriate authorities.

The comments have sparked renewed conversations about food safety in Nigeria, particularly the assumption that products described as fresh, natural or healthy are automatically safe for consumption.

Osinbajo’s account has also generated significant interest online following the circulation of a video of his speech on his YouTube channel, with Nigerians sharing their own concerns about suspected food adulteration and unsafe consumer products.

The wider concerns include allegations involving contaminated drinks, altered expiry dates, adulterated cooking products and other goods sold in Nigerian markets, increasing calls for regulators to strengthen monitoring and enforcement.

Food-safety experts have long warned that inappropriate use of pesticides, industrial chemicals and other substances can expose consumers to harmful residues, depending on the substance involved, concentration and level of exposure.

Calcium carbide has particularly attracted scrutiny because industrial-grade material can contain impurities such as arsenic and phosphorus compounds. However, Osinbajo’s account alone does not establish that calcium carbide or any other specific chemical caused his wife’s headaches, and he did not publicly identify the precise substance allegedly detected in the orange juice.

What his story does highlight, however, is the need for greater scrutiny of the journey food takes from farms and markets to consumers’ tables.

For Nigerians, the warning is stark: fresh-looking fruit and a naturally prepared drink may look healthy, but appearance and preparation alone do not guarantee that food is free from harmful contamination.