News
Suya, Hot Dog Can Cause Cancer –WHO Warns
World Health Organization (WHO) has said that eating processed meats like Nigeria’s favourite barbeques, Suya, Kilishi can cause colorectal cancer in humans.
In simple terms, WHO experts said that red meat is also a likely cause of the disease.
The world health body placed processed meats, including bacon and sausages, in the same category as smoking and asbestos for causing cancer.
The review by WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), released on Monday, said additionally that there was some link between the consumption of red meat and pancreatic cancer and prostate cancer.
Some scientists and researchers said the news may not add much to long-standing health recommendations to limit consumption of such meat.
The report revealed that as little as two slices of bacon can increase the risk of colorectal (bowel) cancer by 18%.
But IARC classified processed meat as “carcinogenic to humans” on its group one list along with tobacco and asbestos, for which there is “sufficient evidence” of cancer links.
Each 50-gram (1.8-ounce) portion of processed meat eaten daily increases the risk of colorectal cancer by 18 percent, the agency estimated.
A 50-gram portion would be the equivalent of eating one hot dog or two slices of bacon. Americans eat about 21.7 grams of processed pork per day, according to a 2011 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Red meat was classified as probably carcinogenic in IARC’s group 2A list, joining glyphosate, the active ingredient in many weedkillers.
The IARC examined some 800 studies during a meeting of 22 health experts earlier this month.
“For an individual, the risk of developing colorectal (bowel) cancer because of their consumption of processed meat remains small, but this risk increases with the amount of meat consumed,” Dr Kurt Straif of the IARC said in a statement.
The classification for red meat, defined as all types of mammalian meat including beef, lamb and pork, reflected “limited evidence” that it causes cancer. The IARC found links mainly with colorectal cancer – which is a cancer that starts either in the colon or rectum – but also observed associations with pancreatic and prostate cancer.
Inconclusive evidence of a link between processed meat and stomach cancer was also observed, it said.
The news prompted animal rights activists People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to offer free vegan diet starter kits and outraged agriculture groups.
The Canadian Meat Council, which represents meat packers such as Maple Leaf Foods (MFI.TO) and the Candian-based units of Cargill Ltd. [CARGIL.UL] and JBS SA (JBSS3.SA), rejected the findings as simplistic, while trade group North American Meat Institute said the IARC report “defies common sense.”
EFCC
The African Development Bank Group last week approved an investment of €6.5 million in the Saviu II fund in order to support technology start-ups through their seed phase and first institutional fundraising, mainly in French-speaking Central and West Africa.
The Bank will invest €4.5 million as equity and €2 million as a first-loss hedging tranche on behalf of the European Commission, under the Boost Africa Programme.
This participation of the Bank Group will enable the Saviu II fund to give priority to companies with a strong technological or digital component.
Saviu II, the second investment vehicle of Saviu Partners, plans to invest between €500,000 and €3 million in about 20 technology or technology-oriented business-to-business start-ups in the seed phase or carrying out first institutional fundraising.
The Saviu II venture capital fund aims to make at least 60% of its commitments in the French-speaking countries of West and Central Africa: Côte d ‘Ivoire, Cameroon, Benin, Senegal, Togo, Burkina Faso and Mali.
The fund can also co-invest in promising technology companies in East Africa that have a strong team and business model, and whose strategy includes entering the market in French-speaking West African countries and establishing a strong presence there.
In addition, the fund will devote a dedicated envelope to pre-seed investments, focusing on minority equity investments, usually in co-investment with studios, incubators or other ecosystem partners.
Nigerian Government has signed a $1.3 billion Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) via the Solid Minerals Development Fund (SMDF) to fund an alumina refinery, national geoscience mapping, and a strategic investment vehicle for mining growth.
Special Assistant to the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Segun Tomori, said the refinery will process one million tonnes of bauxite yearly using a modern Bayer process, powered by an on-site gas-fired cogeneration plant.
Minister Dele Alake called it a transformative milestone boosting GDP, aligning with reforms that improve investment climate, regulations, and licensing to attract private capital. He directed agencies to fast-track permits.
The 20-year project at 95% utilization eyes 19 million tonnes total output, $1.2 billion annual GDP addition, $25 billion economic impact, and $8 billion forex earnings, per feasibility studies.
SMDF Executive Secretary Fatima Shinkafi termed it the agency’s biggest funding deal, supporting value-addition policy.
The partnership extends to geoscience mapping for mineral data, de-risking exploration, and a joint vehicle for mining assets.
Permanent Secretary Engr. Farouk Yabo praised the reforms. Shinkafi signed for government; AFC’s Franklin Edochie for the corporation, witnessed by AFC CEO Samaila Zubairu.
Tomori positioned it as Nigeria’s largest private mining investment and FDI magnet.
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