The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has made a direct call: ban single-use plastics, and do it alongside the ongoing phase-out of styrofoam for food packaging.
Speaking at the GMA’s 26th annual public lecture in Koforidua last Friday, the GMA President, Professor Ernest Yorke, said the continued use of styrofoam and single-use plastics for food packaging was one of the major causes of unsafe food in the country, with the attendant risks of disease and a rising health budget. (See front page for story)
This is not just an environmental issue. It is a public health emergency. Food safety failures happen at every stage of the chain.
From production and harvesting to transportation, processing, storage, sale and consumption.
Contamination often starts long before food reaches the consumer.
Poor agricultural practices, unsafe irrigation water, indiscriminate use of chemicals, inadequate storage, broken cold chains, poor hygiene in transport, and unsafe handling increase the risk of microbial and chemical contamination.
And then there is packaging. When hot food is served in styrofoam or wrapped in single-use plastics that leach chemicals, we are adding another layer of risk.
When plastics clog drains and cause floods, that floodwater contaminates drinking sources, markets and food storage areas.
The recent floods in Accra and other parts of the country prove the link.
Floods disrupt sanitation, spread faecal contamination, compromise refrigeration during power outages, and create conditions for diarrhoea and other water- and food-borne infections.
We cannot talk about safe food without talking about clean environment.
The Government, through the Environmental Protection Agency, is already phasing out styrofoam products.
That is a good first step.
But the GMA argues it is not enough.
“We believe that the ban must be expanded to include single-use plastics in order to achieve a comprehensive solution,” Prof. Yorke said.
The logic is simple.
Styrofoam is one problem. The sachet, the takeaway plastic bag, the plastic cutlery, the food wrappers are others.
They all end up in gutters, lagoons and landfill sites.
They all break down into microplastics that find their way into water and food.
A ban, if implemented effectively and backed by affordable and sustainable alternatives, can improve waste collection, boost recycling, support public education, and strengthen enforcement of environmental regulations.
It can also reduce plastic pollution and contribute to cleaner urban environments.
Other countries have done it.
The question for Ghana is not whether it is possible, but whether we have the political will.
Ghana is in a nutrition transition. Food insecurity and micronutrient deficiencies now coexist with obesity, hypertension, diabetes and other non-communicable diseases.
Food safety, therefore, must move beyond controlling contamination.
It must confront the “slow violence” of diet-related issues. Food safety is not only for producers and regulators.
Consumers have a role.
We must make good decisions about where we buy food, how we store it, how long we keep cooked food at room temperature, and how we dispose of packaging.
Every plastic bag tossed into a gutter is a potential flood.
Every poorly stored meal is a potential hospital visit.
But responsibility cannot rest on consumers alone.
The Government must act.
It must expand EPA’s styrofoam phase-out to cover single-use plastics used for food and drink.
Set a clear timeline, with penalties for violations.
A ban will fail if there are no affordable options.
Support local industry to produce biodegradable packaging, paper wrappers and reusable containers.
Subsidise them initially so that the poor are not punished.
We need more bins, more frequent collection and investment in recycling.
Partner with the private sector and informal waste pickers who already do much of the work.
The GMA’s point is that these issues are connected. Unsafe packaging leads to disease.
Disease raises the health budget.
Plastic waste leads to floods.
Floods destroy food and spread infection.
Floods also destroy roads and property, costing the economy more.
We agree.
Ghana cannot afford to wait.
The evidence on plastics and health is growing.
The evidence on floods and contamination is in front of us every rainy season.
The evidence on diet-related diseases is in our clinics.
Banning single-use plastics alongside styrofoam is not anti-business.
It is pro-health, pro-environment, and ultimately pro-economy.
Let EPA fast-track the regulations.
Let Parliament back it with law.
Let industry innovate alternatives.
Let consumers change habits.
Food safety is not a slogan. It is daily practice.
And it starts with what we wrap our food in, how we dispose of it, and what we choose to eat.
Ban single-use plastics.
The health of Ghanaians depends on it.
