A Senior Dietician at the University of Ghana, Dr Maxwell Bisala Konlan has urged Ghanaians to adopt proper handling of seafood across the value chain to derive nutritional values from both fishes and shellfishes that significantly contribute to healthy living.
Dr Konlan said it is necessary to reduce the deep-frying of seafood to maximise the benefits inhabited in them to prevent cholesterol levels from increasing in the human system, which would be detrimental to healthy living.
He was speaking at the maiden edition of the Seafood Health Community that sought to bring actors within the seafood value chain to enlighten them on the nutritional values of seafood and the effect of plastic on the product they sell. It was organised by the Shopgreens Company Limited, – fresh seafood company -, in partnership with Footprint Africa.
Dr Konlan advised against deep-frying of seafood, noting that it was important to reduce deep-frying in order to maximise the nutritional values in seafood. Adding that there were other effective means of cooking seafood including grilling without using oil, boiling and air frying.
He said adopting good practices of cooking seafood would help consumers to realise the entire nutrient naturally buried in them such as iron, B-vitamins, Vitamin D, Omega 3 fatty acid that helps in brain development and anti-inflammatory that reduces joint pains.
A Public Health Advisor at Makay Medical Centre, Mr Mark Hammond urged all value chain actors to reduce the use of plastic materials in their activities to reduce impact of plastic and plastic packaging on seafood.
He noted that plastic pollution does not only cause harm to marine inhabitants but also causes harm to humans, animals and plants through toxic pollutants.
Mr Hammond said exposure to microplastics might damage the thyroid, which regulates important functions such as controlling hormones that affect fertility.
He said since total elimination of plastics and plastic packaging was impossible now, it important for all value chain actors to heed to the principles of refusing, reducing, re-using, recycling and repairing plastic materials.
In an interview with the Founder of Shopgreens Company Limited, Grace Akosua Amoabeng said the community was formed to keep abreast, all the value chain actors in the seafood space, the nutritional values of seafood.
She said the maiden edition of the Seafood Health Community engagement also sought to assist the actors – suppliers, customers, clients and workers – adopt best practices for plastic packaging on the products they sell, buy and consume.
Ms Amoabeng said as the community is established, the company would work to bring up more programmes that would help educate more Ghanaians on healthy eating and the nutritional values of healthy eating.
The B-Corp Progamme Manager at the Footprint Africa, Madam Alice Winnimi Abagre in an interview said they are collaborating the Shopgreens Company in the novel initiative because it is one of the companies under its B-Programme, which supports Small-to-Medium businesses in the catering and waste management sector.
“We felt it was a good idea to get that knowledge out there and to get people to appreciate how they handle their food especially seafood, ensuring that they are not causing harm to the environment in the process,” She said.
She said the Footprint Africa B-Programme supported the Shopgreens with a “micro grant” of GHS 5,000 to start the innovation that sought to promote the action with the potential to touch many lives and positively affect the environment.
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