NAFDAC Inspects 6,233 Facilities, Removes 7,210 Non-Compliant Products from Circulation in 3 Months – Adeyeye 

The Director-General/CEO of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, has announced that the Agency inspected 6,233 facilities and removed 7,210 non-compliant products from circulation across all 36 States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) between May and July 2026.

Prof. Adeyeye also warned against treating social media allegations as evidence that food products are counterfeit, adulterated or unsafe.

She gave the warning in a statement following a publication by Saturday PUNCH on September 5, 2026, and accompanying social media discussions concerning suspected counterfeit and adulterated food products, including yoghurt, palm oil, apples, soy sauce, olive oil, chicken, fish, water and beverages

Adeyeye acknowledged the public concern generated by the reports but noted that several of the social media claims cited in the publication had not been independently verified.

“Social media allegations do not, by themselves, establish that a product is counterfeit, adulterated, or unsafe,” she said.

She explained that where violations are established through credible investigation, the Agency takes immediate regulatory action, including public safety communications, seizure, recall, disposal and enforcement against responsible persons.

On its regulatory mandate, Adeyeye disclosed that its responsibilities under the NAFDAC Act (Cap. N1, LFN 2004) cover processed and packaged food products and do not extend to all food items in circulation.

She stated that unbranded and unpackaged products, such as palm oil and fufu sold in open markets, fall outside the Agency’s direct regulatory oversight, with sub-national authorities bearing primary responsibility for such products.

The NAFDAC boss also noted that imported fresh produce, including apples, grapes and oranges, falls under the quarantine mandate of the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS).

Adeyeye affirmed that the regulatory body had continued to engage relevant sister agencies and called for more coordinated inter-agency implementation of the National Policy on Food Safety and Quality and its Implementation Plan 2023.

She confirmed that the Agency had battled the unethical use of calcium carbide for artificial fruit ripening since 2018 through import and clearance permit controls, stakeholder engagement, and public enlightenment.

She equally expressed concern over the adulteration of palm oil with azo dyes and hazardous chemicals, as well as reports of bleach being used in the production of fufu, describing the practices as dangerous to public health and subject to regulatory action where its mandate applies.

Adeyeye further recalled that in May 2026, the Agency issued a press release confirming, after rigorous laboratory investigation, that NAFDAC-registered bread products were safe for human consumption.

On the ban on alcohol in sachets and PET bottles below 200ml, announced in January 2026, the Agency maintained that enforcement remained ongoing, adding that manufacturers had begun dismantling or reconfiguring affected production lines.

She explained that Post-Market Surveillance (PMS) is a critical component of NAFDAC’s regulatory operations, with approximately 80% of PMS activities directed at detecting and removing fake, falsified, substandard, and non-compliant products from circulation.

“From May to July 2026, the PMS Directorate conducted routine nationwide surveillance across all 36 States and the FCT, visiting a total of 6,233 facilities and removing 7,210 products from circulation,” she stated.

Food and Water accounted for the highest number of products removed, with 3,633, followed by Drugs and Herbals with 2,459, Cosmetics with 911, Medical Devices with 183, Chemicals with 21, and Vaccines and Biologics with three.

During the period, Drugs and Herbals recorded the highest number of facilities visited at 2,084, followed by Food and Water with 1,808, Medical Devices with 1,077, Cosmetics with 821, Vaccines and Biologics with 268, and Chemicals with 175.

NAFDAC pointed out that notable surveillance outcomes included the investigation and public alert issued on counterfeit Colgate toothpaste, the uncovering of three companies illegally refilling and reselling 19-litre CWAY dispenser bottles using unapproved water sources, and the arrest in July 2026 of a suspect found counterfeiting Oral-B toothpaste.

The Agency stated that the operators involved in the illegal water refilling activities had been sanctioned, while the suspect arrested over the counterfeit Oral-B toothpaste remained in NAFDAC’s custody.

On enforcement, Adeyeye declared that NAFDAC’s Investigation and Enforcement Directorate had intensified coordinated raids, arrests, prosecutions and large-scale destruction exercises across the country.

She disclosed that 150 shops were shut in Aba in December 2023, while counterfeit beverages, spirits and re-validated foods worth ₦5 billion were destroyed.

In February 2024, over 1,300 open drug marketers in Kano were relocated to the Coordinated Wholesale Centre at Kanawa following a valid court order, while expired and unregistered drugs worth ₦11 billion were destroyed in Ibadan in December 2024.

Also in December 2024, 250 shops were shut in Aba and counterfeit products worth ₦7 billion destroyed, while seized products with a street market value of over ₦120 billion were destroyed nationwide during the year.

In February 2026, fake, expired, counterfeit and banned medicines worth over ₦15 billion were destroyed in Ibadan, while in Lagos, over 10 million doses of counterfeit malaria medicines and cosmetics worth approximately ₦3 billion were seized and four persons arrested.

The Agency also reported that coordinated raids in Idumota, Onitsha, and Aba between February and March 2025 led to the seizure and destruction of over 137 forty-foot truckloads of counterfeit and substandard products valued at more than ₦1.5 trillion.

In Abuja, ₦1.8 billion worth of counterfeit medicines, banned sachet alcohol, narcotics and other non-compliant products were destroyed in March 2026.

NAFDAC revealed that a counterfeit rice factory was uncovered in Nasarawa in June 2026, leading to the confiscation of over 1,600 bags valued at ₦5 billion, while five persons were arrested in Abuja for selling counterfeit cosmetics valued at ₦35 million.

The Agency further disclosed that it had secured 64 convictions for counterfeiting across the country, with sentences ranging from one to seven years imprisonment without the option of a fine.

According to NAFDAC, notable sentences included seven years for fake antibiotics, five years for falsified antimalarials, and five years for codeine-containing cough syrups.

The Agency maintained that the continued presence of counterfeit products in the market did not indicate the absence of regulatory surveillance, stressing that the scale and complexity of product counterfeiting required continuous surveillance, intelligence gathering, laboratory verification, enforcement and public engagement.

NAFDAC added that achieving a market free of fake and substandard products was a collective responsibility requiring the Agency, sister agencies, and the public to act together.

It urged consumers to report suspected non-compliant products through its official channels before resorting to social media, to enable discreet, prompt and thorough investigation.

ThelensNG