Training lab techs to keep toxic trans fat out of Nigeria’s food

trans fat lab techs sitting at laboratory table with white lab coat and blue head cap and mask

Nigeria made the life-saving decision to ban trans fat in 2022, but in 2023, a national laboratory assessment supported by RTSL revealed gaps that would have made it difficult to enforce the new policy.

With our partners the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and the World Health Organization (WHO), we trained laboratory scientists from all over Nigeria to measure trans fat content in various foods and perform routine analysis, an essential step for implementing Nigeria’s best-practice policy and monitoring compliance.

Representatives from private and public sector laboratories, including the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Institute of Public Analysts of Nigeria (IPAN), and Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON), learned to use a simplified testing protocol developed by WHO to meet global demand. Participants said the training exceeded their expectations, and committed to training colleagues at their home laboratories.

Learn more about how our partners are eliminating trans fat from the global food supply.