Along many Nigerian highways and rural roads, long stretches of cassava, maize, rice, beans, pepper and melon seeds, among others lie openly under the sun.
To local farmers and processors, it is a cheap and traditional method of preservation. But to health experts, it is a silent invitation to diseases.
From Ogun, Ondo and Oyo in the South-West to Benue, Kogi, and Niger in the North-Central, from Imo, Enugu and Ebonyi in the South-East to Adamawa, Taraba and Yobe in the North-East, roadside drying has become part of everyday life.
It cuts across regions, cultures and crops, turning major transport corridors into open-air drying floors.
Vehicles speed past, raising thick dust that settles directly on food meant for markets and home kitchens.
Animals roam freely, and the bare earth itself becomes a source of contamination. What looks normal, experts warn, is a dangerous national trend quietly moving from farm paths to dining tables.
Dust Is Not Just Sand
Standing beside a road in a cassava-processing community, Mrs. Adebisi, a local garri processor, explained why farmers use the roadside.
“We don’t have space at home, and the sun is better near the road. We just spread it and watch it till evening,” she said.
But an environmental health expert, Sani John, warned the dust settling on food is far from harmless, arguing, “dust from vehicles contains carbon, oil particles and sometimes heavy metals like lead.
“When that enters food, washing later cannot remove everything. People eat it slowly over time and damage their bodies without knowing.”
According to him, constant consumption of contaminated food can lead to stomach infections, weakened immunity and long-term organ problems.
Animals Turn Food Into Waste
At several drying sites, goats and chickens were seen walking across fermented cassava, rice and beans meant for sale.
Nutritionist, Mrs. Helen Okorie, decrying the danger, noted that once animals walk on food, they introduce bacteria, worms and feces.
“That food is no longer clean. Many cases of diarrhea, typhoid and intestinal worms come from such unsafe processing. The bare ground also contains fungi that grow when food dries slowly,” she explained.
Okorie also insisted that some molds produce aflatoxins, a poisonous substance linked to liver cancer and poor growth in children.
Grains like rice and beans easily trap moisture and dirt, making them more vulnerable to mold and bacterial growth.
Stones in Rice and Beans
Beyond cassava and maize, rice and beans, among others, are also commonly spread along highways and bare ground after washing or harvest. Along these roadsides, stones, gravel and dust mix easily with grains meant for pots and plates.
When vehicles pass, dust and tiny stones are blown directly into the grains. What consumers later spend hours picking out in the kitchen often starts on the roadside.
A trader, Mrs. Fatima Kudu had this to say:
“People complain about stones in rice and beans. They think it is only from the farm, but many enter during drying and packing along the road.”
It’s Also a Road Safety Problem
A commercial drivers, Mr. Ibrahim Lawal said roadside drying also endangers motorists.
“Sometimes the food enters the road. Drivers swerve to avoid it and accidents can happen,” he said, adding: “When vehicles pass, they crush the food and the farmers and traders lose money.”
The economic impact is very clear as further collaborated by a trader, Mrs Funke Ade who added, “buyers complain that there is sand in garri, when they notice it is dirty, they reduce the price. We lose profit.”
Hospitals Feel the Impact
A community health worker in Osun State, Mrs Desola Dotun linked unsafe drying to rising food-borne illness.
“Most people think sickness starts in the kitchen, but it starts from the drying ground. We treat many patients for stomach upset, food poisoning and worms. Prevention is cheaper than treatment.”
She emphasized that food safety is part of public health, not just farming.
Medical and Nutrition Warnings
According to Dr. Fredrick Agbo, Medical Director and Chief Executive of Talakawa Pharmacy, roadside drying exposes food to serious hazards, including bacterial and fungal growth, producing carcinogenic aflatoxins, insect and rodent infestation, spreading pathogens as well as chemical contamination from exhaust fumes
“We treat food poisoning, chronic stomach infections and sometimes liver complications. People blame water or cooking, but the real source is often the drying stage,” he said.
He advised food processors to use safer alternatives such as raised platforms, clean tarps, solar dryers, covered areas and proper storage for their products, while also calling on the government to support where necessary to curtail the hazard caused by sun-drying food stuff in the country.
A nutritionist, Mrs. Helen Okorie added, “Nutrition is not only what you eat, but how it is processed.
“Children may eat garri, rice or beans daily, but if they carry toxins from poor drying, growth and immunity suffer.”
The Director of Public Health at the Niger State Ministry of Health, Dr. Ibrahim Idris, warned that foodstuffs dried openly in the sun along roadsides or on bare ground are exposed to serious health risks.
He said such foods easily become contaminated by dust, birds, rodents and harmful microorganisms, making them unsafe for direct consumption.
Dr. Idris urged the public to ensure sun-dried food passes through proper cooking such as boiling or frying before eating.
“If people must sun-dry, they should cover the food with mesh to prevent contamination and avoid eating directly from it,” he said, noting that garri, though fried, is often re-exposed to the sun and consumed without reheating, which increases danger.
He also cautioned that animals roaming communities can urinate or defecate on exposed food, while passing vehicles raise dust that settles on produce laid along highways.
According to him, drying food in the open without protection and consuming it without reheating poses a serious public health threat that requires better handling practices by both processors and consumers.
Farmers Need Support, Not Blame
Agricultural extension officer, Mr. Peter Danjuma said farmers and dryers are not careless, but that they lack options.
Most rural processors don’t have drying platforms or solar dryers.
“If the government and NGOs provide simple raised platforms and training, roadside drying will reduce,” he said.
He recommended community drying centers and enforcement of basic food safety standards.
Mrs. Adenisi also admitted the struggle: “We know dust enters it, but if we stop, our cassava will spoil. We need help, not punishment.”
Niger State Takes Action
Concerned by the situation, community leaders in Niger State have begun condemning unsafe handling of food crops and urging farmers and food processors to adopt cleaner processing.
The call came during a sensitization programme in Mokwa, organized by the Federal Government, Niger State, IFAD, and the Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP), targeting farmers from Lavun, Edati and Mokwa LGAs under its programme.
A health worker, Nurse Leah Hassana Yisa of IBB Specialist Hospital, Minna, warned, “Drying cassava, rice, beans or other crops on roadsides exposes food to vehicle dust, stones and animal waste, risking food poisoning, cancer and intestinal problems like appendicitis from swallowed stones.”
Chairmen of Lavun and Mokwa LGAs, represented by Mal. Lawan Mohammed and Hon. Abubakar Usman, described the sensitization as impactful.
“Our councils will support farmers to replicate what they have learnt in their communities,” they said.
Also, religious leaders joined the campaign.
Chief Imam of Mokwa, Alhaji Musa Ibrahim, stated: “What you will not eat, don’t give to others.”
Mrs. Elizabeth Yisa, Business, Marketing and Development Officer of VCDP, in Niger State announced that tarps and cement floors would be provided.
“We are not just talking. We are providing tools so farmers can change practice,” she said.
Farmers Mrs. Aisha Mohammed and Lami Nakotsu responded, ” We were careless before. Now we will use cement floors and tarps — no more roadsides.”
DAILY POST observation showed that roadside drying is not a single mistake but a chain of risk linking dryers, traders, transporters, regulators and consumers.
Nigeria’s most common foods are first laid on dusty highways before they reach markets.
In that short stage, grains collect stones, exhaust fumes, animal waste, bacteria and toxic fungi.
For crop dryers, the roadside becomes a workplace born from necessity.
For nutritionists and health experts, it becomes a contamination zone.
For hospitals, it quietly feeds disease statistics. And for the government, it exposes the gap between agriculture and public health.
Health experts warn that pollutants and microorganisms introduced during drying accumulate in the body over time. Nutritionists caution that aflatoxins and bacteria undermine child growth and adult immunity.
Doctors confirm that what begins as ordinary garri, rice or beans can end as diarrhea, typhoid, intestinal worms, stomach injuries from stones and even long-term organ damage.
The response in Niger State offers a model: support dryers with platforms and solar dryers, educate traders, inspect markets, and involve community and religious leaders to change habits rooted in tradition.
But without national commitment, roadside drying will remain Nigeria’s unofficial processing industry.
Until farmers and processors are supported and regulated, the dust of Nigerian highways will keep finding its way into the people’s meals, turning roadside drying from a livelihood into a public health risk.
Dust on meal tables: Experts reveal hidden dangers of Nigeria’s roadside drying culture
